


Deal with a Demon

by Anonymous



Series: Ninjago Things [1]
Category: Lego Ninjago, Ninjago - Fandom
Genre: Almost everyone is evil, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angel!Lloyd, Angst, Blackmail, Cole is not as evil as you might think, Dark Cole, Dark Kai, Dark Zane, Evil AU, Evil Cole, Evil Kai, Evil Zane, Green Ninja does not lead The Ninja, His motive is not an excuse, I nicknamed Morro because I thought it was funny I’m sorry, I think I made Kai more evil than necessary but he does have a motive I swear, Is this a happy ending? I don't think it is, I’m sorry, Jay Centric, M/M, No Beta, Not Canon Compliant, Nya’s dead, Someone save Jay I made him suffer too much, Supernatural AU - Freeform, They’ve all got issues, This entire thing is just Jay suffering, Trauma, demon!kai, jay needs a hug, poor jay, vampire!Cole
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-23
Updated: 2020-04-24
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:53:36
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 24
Words: 76,521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21923215
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: There’s a demon in Ninjago, who rules over the lands with his second in command, a vampire. A Nindroid who is sick of humans attempting to take him apart joins them, and a human decides to make a deal with the demon.ORKai is a demon who is trying (and succeeding) in his attempt to take over the world. His second in command, a vampire named Cole, helps him in his endeavor. They are accompanied by a Nindroid who goes by the name ‘Zane’, though no one is sure if that’s actually what he’s called. And then there’s Jay, the poor human who just wanted to protect his parents. It’s them against the savior of humanity: the Green Ninja. Who will triumph in this battle of wills?And who even is the Green Ninja?
Relationships: Cole & Jay Walker, Cole/Jay Walker, Kai/Jay Walker
Series: Ninjago Things [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1686901
Comments: 138
Kudos: 221
Collections: Anonymous





	1. How it Started

“The- the demon is here! Kai is here, in Ninjago City!” A voice cries.

Jay looks up from the pile of scrap metal he was sorting. Kai is  **_here_ ** ?! In Ninjago City?! His brain races at a hundred miles per hour, trying to figure out what the Hell he should do. Run? Hide?

He mentally scolds himself. He can’t run or hide, he’s the only human -that he knows of- in Ninjago City with…  **_abilities_ ** . Well, unless everyone else has secret electricity powers they neglected to tell him about.

He’s the only one who stands a chance against Kai, the demon overlord. Not much of a chance, but a chance nonetheless.

The young adult grabs a set of nunchucks he set aside for messing around with, silently reminding himself that he needs to do this, and it doesn’t matter if he di-

Oh, who is he kidding? Him, Jay Walker, make so much of a scratch again Kai? It’s almost laughable.

But Jay’s not laughing. This is the only choice he has. He can’t let his friends and family get hurt. He takes a deep breath, steeling himself for what he’s about to do.

Then he runs out into the street, nunchucks in hand. Electricity flowing through his veins, he skids to a stop in the center, looking up as a cool breeze blows by. Everyone with common sense had long ago left the area, so it’s just Jay. Just Jay and-

“Humans can have elemental powers? Huh. Well, the more you know.” The demon muses. He looks at Jay, flashing him a charming smile.

He- he doesn’t look like a demon. He just- he looks like a normal person. Unfairly hot, and with oddly spiky hair, but other than that, he looks…  **_normal_ ** .

Jay gets up from his crouch. His hands, slick with sweat, shake uncontrollably. “Ha, well, y’know us humans. We’re full of surprises.” He quips. He’d ask what elemental powers are, but now  **_kinda_ ** feels like a bad time for that.

The demon holds out his hand. “My name’s Kai.” He greets with a crooked smile. 

Jay doesn’t move closer or make any move to shake his hand. “Jay.” He says shortly, watching the demon carefully. He could make a move at any moment.

Kai lowers his arm. “You going to try to fight me?” He asks, his amusement evident in his tone.

They both know who the victor would be.

The human opens his mouth to respond, to tell him that _ ‘Yeah, I’m here to heckin’ wreck you!’ _ , but something clicks in his mind and a completely different sentence falls out of his mouth. 

“No. I want to make a deal.”

Jay mentally bangs his head against a wall. A deal? What does he have to bargain with? Uh, nothing. Absolutely nothing. And even if he did have something to exchange, whatever it was probably wouldn’t be enough to sway Kai, **_the demon overlord_ ** . And even that’s assuming that the demon would be willing to make a deal in the first pl-

Kai’s grin is menacing. It shocks Jay from his thoughts, leaving him trembling in his boots- or, well, converse. But the point is, that grin is fucking terrifing.

“A deal, hmm? And what exactly do you want?” Kai asks. His amusement is gone, replaced by... something else. Something darker.

“I- I want everyone who lives in Ninjago City to be untouchable by you and anyone who associates with you. No one who lives inside the city can be hurt by you or your allies. ” Jay- Jay’s kinda proud of himself. His voice didn’t even shake that much, given the circumstances.

He hesitates a moment, then adds what he knows is coming. “I’ll- I’ll trade my soul for it.”

Kai frowns. “Uh, soul? No. I’m not taking your soul. A soul is a demon’s form of currency, and I don’t plan to go back to Hell anytime soon.” 

Jay bites his lip. Alright, he and everyone he cares about is about to be killed. If he’s lucky, he can stall long enough for some to escape Kai’s wra-

“There is something else.” Kai drawls.

Jay’s pulled from his thoughts. Wha- what else could the demon want? He doesn’t have anything to trade or that could possibly help him, so what could he possibly want? 

“What is it?” Jay blurts out. He can’t help himself.

Kai smirks. “You have an elemental power. A powerful one, at that. I want you to work for me.”

Jay blinks. “Wha- what?”

Kai continues smiling. “I want you to work for me. You will be required to do anything I ask, no matter what. Failure to comply with an order will result in punishment or the breaking of the agreement. If it’s the latter, both you and the citizens of the city will be killed. You’ll do anything I ask, from committing sucide to washing the dishes.” The demon holds out his hand for the second time in this encounter. “Do we have a deal?”

Jay hesitates for a moment. A lifetime of servitude to Kai in exchange for his friend’s and family’s safety.

He doesn’t really have a choice, does he?

Jay lets his nunchucks fall from his grasp, and they clatter loudly against the pavement of the road. Hesitantly, he walks over to the demon and shakes his hand. “We have a deal.” He confirms.

Kai grins, the dark smile burning itself into the deep recesses of Jay’s mind. “Wonderful. You have fifteen minutes to grab anything you may need. Starting… how about  **_now_ ** ?”

Jay darts off back inside his house, silently thanking his lucky stars that his parents were out shopping. He grabs as many outfits as he can fit in his duffel bag, a plastic bag from a store is filled with toiletries, and- and-

That’s all he can really take, isn’t it?

Jay goes back outside to where Kai is waiting. He checks the clock- he still had six minutes remaining. Maybe he should’ve spent some of it inside, used it as a chance to say goodbye. But it’s too late now.

The demon smiles. “Lets go, shall we?” He starts walking down the path. “Zane built a teleportation site not too far from here.” He tells Jay.

Jay frowns. “Who’s Zane?”

Kai just laughs. “You’ll meet him soon enough.”

And, well… that’ll have to be a good enough answer. Jay isn’t sure where the boundaries lie, so its probably best not to push.

The two of them walk down the road, away from Ninjago City, away from the only home Jay’s ever known.

Jay reminds himself that this is worth it, that he’s doing this for his parents, for his frie- oh who is he kidding, he doesn’t have any friends. He’s doing this for his parents.

And even if he wanted to, he can’t back out now. He’s going to be working for Kai and his friends for the rest of his life.

Jay’s surprisingly okay with that. It’s worth it. 

He has to believe that it’s worth it.


	2. Slavery Is Illegal

Jay slips the second they teleport, almost falling on his face.

Key word:  **_almost_ ** .

Kai reaches out and steadies him, an amused look on his face. “Clumsy,” He smirks.

Jay shoots him a glare. “Well ex _ cuuuse _ me for never having used a teleporter before!” He snarks back.

Kai continues smirking. “You’re excused.” Then he starts walking down the hall.

Jay glances around. It looks like they’re in an entrance hall, but he’s never seen such a big room before- if this is an entrance room, how big is the rest of this place?

It seems very old fashioned, with candles being the only light source and dark framed paintings on the walls.

Jay sighs and follows after Kai. It takes them a good three minutes to reach the end of the hall. The human remains silent, concerned about saying something that could set the demon off. Sure, Kai’s been relatively nice so far- surprisingly nice, considering who he is- but that could change at any moment.

Kai leads the stressed young adult through dozens of hallways and rooms, so many that they all start to blur together.

Hopefully Jay isn’t supposed to remember the layout. Well, at least not yet. If he plays his cards right, he’ll have the rest of his life to figure this out.

Wow. His current ‘best case scenario’ is being a slave to a demon for the rest of his existence. What even is his life at this point?

Jay sighs. Being a slave for a demon- even one who seems nice- is sounding less appealing the longer he thinks about it. It sounded great twenty minutes ago, but he wasn’t exactly weighing the pros and cons- well, yes he was. It was either this or let his parents get killed. If he had to, he’d choose this again.

Not that anything bad has happened yet. But its only a matter of time at this point.

Kai glances at him. “Something wrong?”

Jay quickly shakes his head. “Nope! Everything is perfectly fine, I am perfectly fine, I’m not freaking out or anything, where’d you get that idea?”

Kai sighs, but otherwise doesn’t answer, choosing instead to lead him to the next room.

A man with shaggy black hair and dark olive skin sits at a short rectangular table, reading a book. He glances up when the two enter the room. His eyes skim over Kai, but lock onto Jay. 

The man opens his mouth as if to speak, but before he can get a word out, Kai is already talking. 

“No you can’t feed off him, no you can’t kill him, and he’s not here for Zane to dissect.” The demon says.

The man frowns. “Uh, what? He’s human. If he’s not food or entertainment, why’s he here?” He sounds somewhat annoyed by this development.

Kai smiles. “His name is Jay, and he works for me now.”

The man sighs and goes back to his book. 

Kai turns to Jay. “This is Cole, my second in command.” He explains to the human.

Jay’s eyes widen and he has to mentally force himself not to back away. “Th- the vampire?” His voice does  **_not_ ** go up an octave. It stays just where it is. It definitely doesn’t get squeaky, either.

Cole looks up from his book, putting a bookmark between the pages before closing it and placing it on the table. He turns to Jay, his cold gaze sizing him up.

“Something special about this one? Other than him being cute, I mean.” He continues to stare at Jay with dark eyes as he gets to his feet.

Kai nods. “He’s the Master of Lightning.”

… is it bad that Jay has no idea what that means? Well, it’s clearly referring to his electricity powers, but lightning? Master? What does this mean?

His confusion must be showing, because Cole gives him a faux-sympathetic smile. “Aw, is baby confused?”

Jay glares. “My name is Jay Walker, and I am 23 years old.” He growls at the vampire.

Then he hides behind Kai because he doesn’t want to get murdered.

To his surprise, the vampire just laughs. “So, does he just work for you, or can Zane and I boss him around?”

“Just don’t kill him or hurt him too badly,” Kai orders. “Same goes for Zane.”

Cole nods. “Got it. But hypothetically, I could make him clean my room?”

Kai laughs. “Yeah, you can make him clean your room.” He turns to Jay. “Cole is my second in command. Do whatever he says unless it directly conflicts with my orders. Got it?”

Jay quickly nods. “Perfectly understood. Crystal clear.”

Kai gives a quick nod before turning to Cole. “I need to talk to Zane, could you watch him for me?”

Cole smirks. “Yeah, I can do that.”

“Thanks.” And with that, Kai leaves the room.

A few moments pass in tense silence as Cole openly stares at Jay. The young adult pointedly avoids eye contact, choosing to stare at his own feet.

“How’d Kai convince you to come with him?” Cole breaks the silence.

“We made a deal. I’d go with and work for him for the rest of my life, but no one associated with him can hurt or kill people that live in Ninjago City.” Jay explains quietly.

Cole looks surprised by this. “Really? You didn’t ask for immortality or anything?”

Jay scoffs. “Why, so I can be a slave for longer? It may take a while, but eventually I’ll die of old age.”

Cole laughs. “Did the deal specifically say ‘for the rest of your life’?” He questions.

Jay frowns, thinking back. “No… why?”

Cole just smiles, picking up his book. “No reason.”

Jay suddenly feels more uncomfortable than he did when the vampire was staring. “Wh- why? Why is that difference so important?”

Cole doesn’t answer, he just flips open his book and continues reading.

Jay pauses. Something here is wrong. Something here is very,  **_very_ ** wrong.

But what is it? Well, its most likely related to him being ‘The Master of Lightning’ and the lack of the specific phrase used in the deal, but what could it be?

Something suddenly clicks. “I’m not going to die of old age.” He realizes, a horrible idea creeping into his mind.

“You aren’t allowed to kill yourself.” Cole doesn’t look up from his book.

Jay shakes his head. He can’t believe he didn’t think of this sooner. “More likely than not, I’m going to be killed by the Green Ninja.” 

He’s going to be killed by the savior of Ninjago, because he’ll have no choice but to serve Kai to the end, even if that means fighting the one he’s been praying for.

Cole looks up, his eyes seeming to bore directly into Jay’s soul. The vampire sets his book down and makes his way over to the human. He gets right into Jay’s face, making the young adult stumble backward.

“It’s cute that you think we’re gonna let you die.” Cole breathes into Jay’s ear. “You’re one of us now. You’re one of The Ninja.”

Jay doesn’t whimper. He doesn’t, okay? He absolutely doesn’t. Just like he doesn’t back up further against the wall. 

Cole smiles, flashing his fangs. “You’re stuck with us.  **_Forever_ ** .”

His face is **_right_** next to Jay’s, okay, he’s too close, **_way_** too close, this is not okay, this is not okay, this is **_not_** **_okay_** **_at all_**.

And then Kai walks back in. “Cole, the fuck are you doing to him?”

Cole backs away. “Just teasing him.” He flashes Kai a smile.

Kai narrows his eyes. “Uh-huh. Sure.” But he doesn’t chide Cole, choosing instead to walk back over to Jay without any further comment against the vampire.

Jay darts beside Kai with his head down, putting the demon between him and the vampire. “Cole is scary.” He mutters under his breath.

Kai frowns at him. “And I’m not?” He sounds somewhat bothered by this. 

Jay quickly looks up, about to reassure the demon that yes, he’s terrifying and he definitely doesn’t need to act differently to be more terrifying because that would be  **_awful_ ** for Jay.

But Kai looks conflicted. Like he’s not sure how he feels about not being scary.

Jay keeps his mouth shut, looking back down at his feet. The floor looks like it’s made of obsidian, which is both cliche for a villain but badass at the same time.

Kai sighs. People seem to be doing that a lot today. He sets a hand on Jay’s shoulder. “Jay. I think I’m going to regret this, but I can always change it later.”

Jay looks up. This is bad, this is bad, is he going to kill him? Or have him kill himself? This is bad, no matter what it is it’s going to be bad bad  **_bad_ ** -

“You speak only when given permission or asked a direct question. Got it?”

Jay blinks. He- he’s not allowed to talk? Well, it could be worse, but…  **_he’s not allowed to talk_ ** .

“I asked you a question.” Kai’s voice is dark and menacing in a way that matches his earlier grin. Something tells Jay that if he looks up, Kai won’t be grinning now.

“Understood.” The human murmurs. His hands start shaking again. He’s not allowed to talk. Talking is how he stays sane, how he calms down, how he- well, how he functions when under stress. And a small hunch tells him that he’s going to be under a  **_lot_ ** of stress.

Kai nods, turning to Cole. “So I may have forgotten to actually get the things I went to the city for….” he trails off.

Cole sighs. “Kai, you idiot.”

Jay flinches at the words. He- he’s talking to Kai like that?  **_Kai_ ** ?

Kai rolls his eyes. “Well before I even got to do anything,  **_this idiot_ ** -“ He pushes on Jay’s shoulder “- decided to show up and show off his powers. And I may have gotten distracted.” He sounds almost timid in the last sentence.

What on Ninjago is going on?

Cole shakes his head, but he seems amused. “I’ll get it. Can I take the slave? He probably knows his way around.”

Kai hesitates. “He’s one of us now, isn’t he?”

Cole nods. “I’ll refer to him as Jay.”

Kai shakes his head. He turns to Jay. “Pick a color that isn’t red, white, black, or green.”

Jay hesitates. Well, his favorite color wasn’t said, so…

“Blue.” Jay gets out nervously.

Kai smiles. “Welcome to the team, Blue Ninja.”

… Jay doesn’t want to be a Ninja. He really doesn’t. But he doesn’t really have a choice, does he?

It seems like it’s becoming normal for him not to have a choice. And from now on, he’ll probably never get to make a decision again.

But that’s okay. This is worth it. His parents are safe. It’s worth it.

  
  



	3. Junkyard

When they arrive back at Ninjago City, its bustling with people trying to build defenses. There’s a barricade in the main path, and people all over carrying weapons. Jay smiles. Well, its not like they’ll need it anymore.

Cole walks up to the barricade, with Jay close behind.

The postman lays eyes on him, but before he can say anything, Cole raises his hands in surrender. “I’m not here for a fight. I just want to buy a few things.”

“Y- you’re the vampire.” The postman realizes.

Cole keeps his hands up. “Just want to buy a few things. Kai was here earlier, but he got distracted by this guy.” He shoots a glare at Jay.

Jay gives a nervous smile and a small wave.

“Walker, is that you?” The postman demands, looking shocked and horrified.

Jay glances at Cole.

“That was a direct question. You’re allowed to answer.” Cole crosses his arms.

“Y-yeah. Its me.” Jay confirms.

“What are you doing with the vampire?” The postman demands. A crowd of people with weapons starts to form around the barricade, eyeing the vampire with fear and distaste. Some of it’s probably at Jay too, but, well… Jay’s not going to think about that.

“I made a deal with Kai.” The Blue Ninja explains.

“ **_Y- YOU WHAT_ ** ?!” The postman exclaims in horror.

“I made a deal with Kai.” Jay repeats.

Cole sighs. “Look, he made a deal with Kai, in summary if you live in Ninjago City then no one assicated with Kai is allowed to hurt you. That includes me. We’re just here for some spare parts and electronics.”

“Jay? Is that you?” A familiar voice calls.

Jay’s eyes widen. Oh no. This is bad. This is  **_very_ ** bad. Horrible, even. “Uh… nope!”

Cole turns to Jay. “Is that your dad?” 

Jay opens his mouth to reply, but Cole keeps talking.

“I don’t recommend lying to me.”

Jay glances at the ground. “Y- yeah. That’s my dad.”

Cole nods. “You want to go say goodbye?”

“Jay! Oh, Jay! I was so worried ‘bout you!” Ed calls, making his way up the barricade and over to Jay.

The Blue Ninja hides behind Cole. “Not really. I don’t want to explain what I did.”

Cole smiles. “Too bad. I want to meet him.”

Ed makes it to the ground and walks over to the young adult. “Jay! You’re back! Now, I was telling your mother that you were okay, and she was telling  **_me_ ** the same thing. Now, who’s your friend?”

Before Jay can say anything, the vampire holds his hand out to the mechanic. “I’m Cole, your son’s new boss.”

Ed looks surprised, but shakes Cole’s hand. “Jay! Y’didn’t tell me you were gettin’ a job!”

Cole feigns surprise of his own. “He didn’t? Well, he just got the offer today. He’s really a master of electricity.”

...and there’s that reference to being ‘The Master of Lightning’ again. What does that mean? Why is it so important?

Ed nods. “Me and Edna, we taught our boy well, ‘idn’t we Jay?”

Jay quickly nods. “Y-yeah. Everything I know.”

Cole smiles. “Say, we came back to get some spare parts and electronics. Jay came with to show me where I could find them, since I’m new around Ninjago City. But from what I’m hearing, you work with that kind of stuff!”

Ed nods. “Oh, yes. Me, Edna, and Jay here all work on our junkyard,  _ ‘Scrap N Junk’ _ .”

Cole looks like he’s fighting back a laugh. “Jay didn’t tell me that.”

Jay decides to busy himself by looking at how the bystanders are doing.

The bystanders are freaking out. Weapons are being gathered, people are running around like crazy, and the postman looks near a heart attack.

Jay feels bad for them, but it’s not like they don’t already know that Cole can’t attack them. Cole himself told th-

Okay they probably think he’s lying. That’d explain it. And what reason do they have to believe the vampire? None. For all they know, Cole’s trying to trick them into letting their guard down.

“Well, m’sure Jay here can help ya find what you’re lookin’ for! If we don’t have it at our junkyard, he’ll know where to find it, won’t ya Jay?” Ed smiles.

Jay tunes back into the conversation. “I- probably. There might be a few things I can’t find, but I most likely know where most electronic things are.”

Cole smiles at Jay. “Excellent.” He then turns back to Ed. “Can we come in?”

Right. Vampires need permission to ent- wait, this is a city, not a building. This is most likely Cole reminding Jay of who he is and not to get too comfortable.

Before the townspeople can start yelling out ‘No, he most certainly  **_can’t_ ** come in!’, Ed nods, giving a small laugh. “Well of course!”

There’s angry and scared grumbling among the townspeople.

Jay tugs on Cole’s sleeve, trying to get his attention.

Cole sighs, turning to Jay. “What is it?”

“Could- can I explain the deal to them? I think they’d be freaking out less if they heard from me what was going on.” The Blue Ninja requests.

Cole shakes his head. “No.”

He doesn’t elaborate.

Jay sighs and looks away. Well, it was worth a shot. But Cole seems to want to keep his parents in the dark about his new ‘job’... by calling it a job when it’s really slavery. Which isn’t even legal, but it’s kinda… consensual slavery? Jay did agree to this, after all.

“Well, the two of ya comin’?” Ed asks, standing at the foot of the barricade.

Cole walks over with Jay close behind. “Of course. Lead the way.”

Jay has a new idea of what happened. Kai didn’t leave Hell behind when he made it to the mortal realm… no, he brought it with him. And is currently unleashing it on Jay because apparently he has nothing better to do.

So the three of them make their way to the junkyard Jay once called his home. Once there, Ed leaves the two to their search. 

After he leaves, Jay tugs on Cole’s sleeve again.

The vampire sighs. “What now?”

“What are we looking for?” The Blue Ninja asks.

Cole hands Jay a piece of paper with neat writing that looks almost typed on it. “Zane made a list.”

Jay scans over the paper. He  **_almost_ ** starts talking about where the best places to find the items are… and then remembers that he can’t talk. Sighing, the Blue Ninja starts searching through the piles of scrap metal for the materials.

Cole just watches him.

They spend a good five minutes in silence as Jay looks. Well, Jay  **_would_ ** be talking, but he can’t- Kai gave him an order.

“I’m the Black Ninja.” Cole mentions idly.

Jay glances up. Why is Cole telling him this? Is it relevant somehow?

“Kai’s the Red Ninja, and Zane’s the White Ninja. And, well, you’ve heard of the Green Ninja.” Cole continues. 

Jay continues to look for the next item on the list- he’s only gotten two out of fourteen.

“All of us have elemental powers.”

**_This_ ** causes Jay to look up. He’s been trying to figure out what these were from the get-go. Is Cole going to tell him, or just tease him about it?

The vampire arches an eyebrow and gestures back to the pile of scrap Jay has been looking through. 

Oh. He’s only going to keep talking as long as Jay is working. That makes sense.

The young adult quickly turns back to the pile, and keeps searching. But he’s only half-paying attention now.

“My Elemental Power is Earth. It took centuries, but I developed from barely being able to move the dirt around me to being able to move mountains.” Cole tells him.

Jay grabs the next item. Three down, eleven to go.

“But you… you already have a grasp on your powers without any formal training. Lightning functions as electricity, and you learned to use that to your advantage. You can already manipulate your powers far beyond what I was able to- even after training for a few months.” Cole seems somewhat amused.

Jay is barely even paying attention to the scrap in front of him. So would this make Cole the elemental Master of Earth? From what he’s hearing, it sounds like it. And following the same logic- and what he’s been told- Jay would be the elemental Master of Lightning.

“I can only imagine what you’ll be like after a few millennia. Maybe one day you’ll be strong enough to spar against Kai.” 

Millennia? Uh, Jay is human? He’s not going to live that long. He’ll live maybe one century, and that’s if he’s  **_lucky_ ** . Which he isn’t.

Cole laughs, as if sensing Jay’s confusion. “You’re one of The Ninja now, Jay. We don’t leave one another behind. Even if it means dragging your ghost out of the Cursed Realm, you’re going to be stuck with us for all of eternity.”

Jay freezes. Uh, what? He did not just hear that. Nope, he definitely didn’t hear it, and Cole  **_certainly_ ** didn’t say it. There’s no way. Absolutely no way.

Cole seems to be about to say something, when there’s a ruckus outside the junkyard. People are  **_freaking out_ ** , running around in crowds with weapons.

Cole sighs. “Stay here.” Then he walks off, clearly trying to find the source of the chaos.

Jay just sits there, stunned by the message he just heard. He-  **_forever_ ** ? A slave to Kai and his friends for the rest of eternity? 

The young adult shakes his head, trying to distract himself from the thoughts, and goes back to the scrap pile, searching for the next part on the list.

A few minutes later, Jay has just collected the sixth part when Kai walks in with Cole trailing behind him.

“We need to go.” Kai mutters, walking over to Jay. The Blue Ninja stands up, parts in hand. Kai shakes his head. “We can come back for them, right now we need to go.”   
  
Jay wants to ask why. He almost does, too. Then he remembers.

Kai glances at him with an odd look as he leads him and Cole out of the junkyard. Then he blinks. “I take it back, you can talk. Its creepy when you don’t talk.”

Jay breathes a sigh of relief. “I hate not talking. I hate it so much. Its horrible. It’s torture. I hate it with a passion. Please,  **_please_ ** never make me shut up again.”

Kai smirks. “Only as a punishment.”

Jay mentally reminds himself to never do anything Kai doesn’t like.

“Where are we going?” He asks the demon.

Kai glances at Cole. “You tell him.”

Cole sighs. “We think we’ve found the Green Ninja.”

Oh.

Oh,  **_shit_ ** .


	4. The Monastery

“Uh, what? Th- the Green Ninja? You found him? Or her? I don’t know if they're a boy or a girl. But you found them? How?” Jay rambles, shocked by this development. The Green Ninja is the only one who has a chance of beating Kai. The prophecy doesn’t even say which side will win- only that the Green Ninja is the only one who has even the smallest chance of defeating him.

Jay bites his lip nervously. Since he’s working for Kai, the Green Ninja winning would most likely mean his death.

“That’s not what’s important right now.” Kai tells him as they exit the city- much to the relief of the citizens who don’t know they’re probably about to try and murder the one person who could stand a chance against the demon. They probably wouldn’t be relieved if they knew that.

So the three go up to the top of the mountain of supplies the townspeople gathered to keep people out. Jay takes one last remorseful look at the city he grew up in, with a silent goodbye to his parents.

Because who knows if he’ll ever be allowed to return.

Kai starts to make his way down the barricade.

Jay quickly follows, ignoring the confused and stressed noises the city dwellers are making.

Cole walks after them, grumbling some less than polite things about the people of the city.

The three walk out of Ninjago City, and make their way to the teleportation site, which is surprisingly close by. Jay frowns. Has anyone ever discovered it before? And if they did… well, anyone who did would probably be dead. Kai isn’t exactly known for his mercy.

Speaking of Kai, the demon walks over and goes up the one of the stands that marks the edges of the site. He taps out…  **_something_ ** on its screen. “Let’s go get the Green Ninja!” He says cheerfully.

Jay is less than thrilled. “Why am I coming with you guys for this? I mean, I’ll only get in the way. I shouldn’t be brought to catch them, I… well, I already said why, I’ll be in your way.”

Cole smiles. “We have our reasons.”

Oh. This is bad. This is very  **_very_ ** bad. Are they going to use him as bait? Blackmail? Or are they going to have him try to fight the Green Ninja? Which, by the way, is a fight Jay would  **_definitely_ ** lose.

They teleport away, appearing high on a mountain, with a bunch of stairs leading down, and an open, old fashioned building in front of them. It looks almost like a monastery.

Kai kicks down the double doors. “Oh Green Ninja~! Come out, come out wherever you are!” He calls out in a sing-song tone.

They walk inside, and it’s strangely empty. There are multiple bedrooms, and lots of training equipment. But the strangest thing is that there’s still breakfast on the table, still clothes in the dresser, still tea on the stove.

“Someone left in a hurry.” Kai comments with narrowed eyes as he scans the room.

Cole nods. “Someone must have let them know we were coming.”

Wait… let  _ ‘them’  _ know? Isn’t there only one Green Ninja? Who could the other guy around here be?

“Or maybe Wu saw visions in his smoke again.” The demon muses, glancing back to another room they had already passed through.

Hmm… is ‘Wu’ this other person?

“You can see visions in smoke?” Jay asks. God, it’s nice to be able to talk again.

Kai waves him off. “Don’t worry about it.”

And Jay wants to push- he wants to know what on Ninjago is going on! But he won’t. It’s not worth the risk.

He decides to ask a different question. “Who’s this ‘Wu’ guy?”

Cole ignores him, and Kai- Kai looks almost…  **_nervous_ ** . But that can’t be. He’s  **_Kai_ ** . The demon overlord! The Red Ninja! He can’t be scared!

The demon doesn’t answer his question.

Cole takes the tea off the stove and smells it. “Not Travelers Tea, at least.” He sets the teapot down on the counter and puts out the fire. 

“What’s travelers tea?” Jay asks, somewhat annoyed by how little information he’s getting.

“Don’t worry about it.” The two supernatural beings answer in unison.

“Jinx.” Kai adds.

“Oh come on!” Cole complains.

Jay sighs. Why are they refusing to answer his questions! It’s not like he could tell anyone about what he learned, he’s stuck with at least one of them for… for… for God knows how long!

“Can I have an answer to  **_any_ ** of my questions? Or do the two of you just like not telling me anything?” Jay huffs.

Cole groans. “We’ll tell you when we feel like it, okay? Stop being so pushy!” 

Kai just sighs, ignoring both of them. He puts a finger to his ear. “Zane, tell me you’ve got something on Wu and the Green Ninja.”

Jay can’t hear the response, so he settles for making faces at Cole. He’s screwed over no matter what he does, so what’s even the point anymore? 

Cole makes faces back, and he seems amused by Jay’s antics. Which is probably a good thing, because a bad reaction could mean his death.

And his death would mean he doesn’t work for Kai anymore ... and that would mean Kai could kill his parents.

The demon grumbles something under his breath before taking his hand away from his ear. “Zane’s got nothing.”

Jay quickly stops making faces. It’s one thing to mess around with Cole, but Kai… Kai is on a whole other level. Scratch that, he’s not even playing the same game! It’s like they’re playing Pong while he plays Skyrim. 

No matter how skilled you are, you can’t match up to Kai. 

Well, not unless you’re the Green Ninja.

How anyone could stand up to a  **_demon_ ** is a mystery.

Unless…

“Is the Green Ninja an angel?” Jay wonders aloud. Because if demons are real, who says angels aren’t?

Kai whips around. “What did you just say?” The dark look in his eyes is back.

“Uh, well I- I kinda figured that since you were a demon, it might make sense for the only one who could stand against you would be an angel? B-but that’s just an idea, y’know?” Jay gives a nervous laugh.

Cole looks intrigued. “That would make a lot of sense. And we’ve recently heard of an angel…” he trails off, looking to Kai.

The demon shakes his head. “Lloyd’s a literal child. There’s no way he’s the Green Ninja.” He argues.

“We’re all  **_immortals_ ** , Kai. He’s got time to grow up.” Cole points out. “And he’s the Master of Energy- he’ll be really powerful when he figures out how to use it.” 

Kai still looks somewhat hesitant. “He’s just a kid.” He repeats, but his voice is tinged with unease.

“Tell you what, let’s make a bet.” Cole prompts with a smile. “I say he  **_is_ ** -“

“No bet.” Kai cuts him off. “Let’s go find him.”

Cole laughs the whole way out of the monastery.

Once they reach the stairs, the three of them pause.

“We need specific places to be able to teleport, don’t we.” Jay realizes. He glances down the mountain, groaning at what must be thousands of stairs.

Kai nods with a sigh. “Better get started. But one last thing.” He turns back to the monastery, a flame lighting up in his hand. “We can wait until this place goes up.”

It takes around nine minutes for the building to burn down.

Kai watches with a smirk, Cole appears uninterested, and Jay… Jay doesn’t know what to think.

After the last flames die out, Kai turns to the stairs with a groan. “Let’s get this over with.”

They trudge their way down the stairs. At one point, Jay almost slips, and he swears he saw his life flashing before his eyes. Eventually, Cole must’ve gotten tired of his grumbling, because he picked up Jay and carried him for a good while.

By the time they’ve made it to the bottom, two hours have gone by.

As they’re reaching the ground, Kai reaches up to his ear. “Zane, you’re amazing and I love you.” 

Cole looks at Kai expectantly.

Kai smiles. “He’s got a lead.”

Is this good or bad? Jay honestly doesn’t know. Well, technically it’s bad, because the demon overlord is coming close to finding the one person who can stop him.

But why is Jay excited at the prospect? It’s like he’s starting to root for Kai!

Well, he kinda is. His parents and a large amount of people are safe as long as he is on Kai’s side, so he should probably  **_actually be on Kai’s side_ ** .

“But before we go, let’s drop Jay off at the base. We don’t really  **_need_ ** him to fight the Green Ninja.” Kai decides.

Jay breathes a sigh of relief, while Cole whines.

“Sure we don’t need him, but it’d be a good way to freak out Lloyd!” The vampire complains.

“Who’s Lloyd?” Jay asks.

“An angel who we think might be the Green Ninja.” Kai explains. “And Cole, no. We don’t need him and I don’t want to risk him getting hurt.”

Cole shakes his head with a sigh, but doesn’t argue.

Why is Kai trying to keep him safe? What’s the benefit? Well, he probably just doesn’t want to lose his slave the same day he got him. That’s it.

“But when we get to Lloyd, are we going to kill him?” Cole asks. “It would be safer, but he might not actually be the Green Ninja and the real one could get upset and do better in the fight.”

“We’ll hold him hostage for a little while. If the Green Ninja doesn’t show up or if we find evidence that Lloyd’s the Green Ninja, then we can kill him.” Kai tells Cole.

The vampire nods. “Alright.”

Jay is suddenly struck by something. Cole’s a vampire. They’ve been outside all day and it’s not nighttime. How…?

“Is sunlight not a real weakness for vampires?” The Blue Ninja asks.

Cole glances upward. “It is for weaker ones. Once you get strong enough, you’re immune to the sun.”

“What about garlic?” Jay asks. Is nothing he knows about vampires true?

“Why do you want to know?” Cole shoots back, crossing his arms.

“If you hurt- or try to hurt- my friends or me, you will be punished accordingly. Kill someone who works for me and our agreement is void. Is that understood?” Kai glares at Jay, his dark eyes issuing a threat of their own.

“Yep. Perfectly understood. Got it. No hurting you or friends. All good.” Jay quickly nods. 

“Good. Now let’s take you back to base. You’ll be hanging out with Zane for a little while.”


	5. The Beginning of the End

Kai opens a door into a large room decked out with technology. There’s someone hunched over a computer, rapidly typing something out. 

“So this is Jay?” The man turns around.

The first thing Jay notices is that his skin is made of metal. Then he registers the glowing, neon blue eyes.

Of course, Jay speaks without thinking. “You’re a robot!” He exclaims in awe.

The man’s gaze goes cold. “Nindroid.” He corrects. He turns back around, to his computer. It looks extremely high tech, way above any of the computers Jay’s seen on the market. 

Kai sighs. “Zane, could you watch him for me while we go look for the Green Ninja?” 

Oh, so this is Zane. Why did no one mention he was a rob- er, Nindroid?

Zane nods, not looking up from his work. “I am not allowed to cause permanent harm, correct? Are temporary injuries such as bruises and minor cuts acceptable?”

Jay starts slowly backing away. Kai grabs his arm, preventing him from backing up further.

“No breaking bones, but bruises and non-heavy cuts are fine.” Kai agrees, though he sounds somewhat reluctant.

Jay makes a squeaking noise and attempts to hide behind Kai. Kai sighs and steps aside, leaving him exposed to Zane again.

Zane sighs. “I don’t like humans.” It’s not a whine or even much of a complaint. He says it like it's a simple fact.

“I’m sorry I called you a robot that was just an immediate reaction to a metal person.” Jay blurts out.

“I am not a ‘metal person’. I am a Nindroid.” Zane corrects, tapping the computer keys a little harder than is probably necessary.

“Sorry?” Jay squeaks.

Kai sighs, glancing between them. “Just- look, just let him be dumb. He stops being stupid after a few minutes.”

Jay glances around the room. “You’re talking to Zane, aren’t you.” It’s not a question- he already knows it’s a fact.

Kai doesn’t dignify his statement with a response. “Zane, just try, okay?”

Zane finally turns back around from the computer. “I will do my best to avoid harm.” He sounds hesitant, as though he’s uncomfortable with the idea.

This isn’t going to end well for Jay. Maybe if he just hides in a corner and doesn’t say anything, Zane will leave him alone.

Kai gives Jay a warning glare as he walks out of the room, the door swinging shut behind him.

And then there were two.

Jay backs his way into the corner furthest away from Zane and busies himself by looking at the technology around the room.

He only makes it two minutes before he breaks his own no-talking rule.

“Where’d you get this stuff? Its certainly not available on the market- I would have heard of it! It’s amazing!” Jay marvels, awed by the level of tech. Seriously, the quality is to die for. He can tell that without even touching anything.

Zane doesn’t look up from his computer, continuing to tap at the keyboard. “I created it. It’s not on the market because it’s not for sale. It is for my use to help Kai in his endeavors.”

Jay nods. “How’d you start working with Kai, anyway? I mean, Cole I understand, but-“

“I don’t like humans.” Zane cuts him off. “Humans are nothing but trouble. I am helping Kai neutralize the majority of the species.” 

Jay blinks. “Wh- why don’t you like humans? What did we do?”

Zane turns around, finally stopping his work. “Humans like to take apart technology and see how it works. If it is higher quality than they can make, they want it for themselves.”

“How is that a bad thing?” Jay asks. He works with technology a lot, and he’s always been fascinated by it.

Zane narrows his eyes, giving Jay a scalding glare. “I am made of technology. My system is extremely high tech, made of materials and programming beyond what the average man could possibly hope to understand. I’ve grown tired of humans attempting to take me apart for their own gain.”

Jay’s eyes widen. “I- people tried to take you apart? That’s horrible!”

Zane gives a sad smile. “What is not human is not cared for. I am simply a means to an end to them.” Then his cold and calculating expression is back. “If you attempt to disassemble me-“

“I would never do something like that. Anything capable of conscious thought shouldn’t be hurt or killed.” Jay interjects. 

Zane nods. “You are more thoughtful than the majority of your kind.” He turns back to his keyboard.

There’s about thirty seconds of silence. Jay doesn’t know what to say to that.

He decides to change the topic. “What are you working on?”

“I am analyzing the prophecy and it’s parts, attempting to detect if there is any possible way to make Kai more likely to win the upcoming battle.” Zane tells him, continuing to tap at the keyboard.

Jay nods. “Which verse are you working on?”

“Four. It is the only one which tells of a weakness.” Zane doesn’t look up. “I am attempting to learn who the ‘lone human’ is.”

“I’ve only heard the first two verses. Y’know, the whole;

‘When the world is held by the reign of the mighty, 

When Ninjago is held under tyranny,

When the one of Hell has made his way to the throne,

The world is not alone.

One will rise above the rest.

The Green Ninja, at his best

Will greet the hell-spawn in a fight,

And with luck on our side, we will return to light.’.” Jay recites.

Zane glances over at him. “There are four verses.”

“What are the other two?” Jay prompts.

Zane clears his throat.

“Be wary of the one wreathed in shadow,

For he too will not be easy to overthrow.

The one of steel stands by their side, 

And he is not one from which you can hide.

The Green Ninja has but one chance

And only in one circumstance 

Will the hellspawn fall

And that is if the lone human rises to the call.”

Jay blinks. “So… who’s the ‘lone human’? I mean, the shadow guy is probably Cole, and I’m assuming the ‘one of steel’ is you, but…” 

Zane sighs. “I told you, I’m attempting to figu-“ The White Ninja freezes, his eyes going wide. He takes his hand to his ear. “Kai, I know who the ‘lone human’ is.”

There’s a muffled voice from the other side that Jay can’t make out.

“My apologies. I will tell you upon your arrival . Do I need to prepare a room for our…  **_guest_ ** ?” Zane speaks into the comm.

The muffled voice says something.

Zane nods. “Of course.” He brings his hand down from his ear, and stands up. He walks past the Blue Ninja as he makes his way out the door. “Follow,” He instructs.

And what else is Jay supposed to do? He follows the White Ninja, debating asking who the lone human might be.

He already knows who this ‘guest’ is.

The two Ninja make their way through the mansion, and down several sets of stairs. Finally, they reach a-  **_oh_ ** .

Kai has a dungeon.

Good to know, good to know, if Jay’s lucky he can avoid ever being on the other side of the bars. He makes another mental note against bothering Kai in any way, shape, or form.

Zane opens a cell and starts messing with restraints on the wall, doing God knows what to them. 

“Can I ask a question?” Jay asks. “A- a question other than the one I just asked.”

Zane sighs. “Go ahead.”

“You said you’ve discovered who the ‘lone human’ is. Can- can I know who they are?” Jay asks, preparing himself for the worst.

Which would probably be him getting smacked.

Much to Jay’s relief, Zane doesn’t smack him, but he does pause in his work on the cuffs. “You are allowed to know, yes.” 

He doesn’t elaborate.

“Who- who’s the ‘lone human’?” Jay prompts.

Zane doesn’t look up from his work. “You are.”

There’s a pause. 

“I’m sorry, what?” Jay demands. “ **_Me_ ** ? It implies that whoever this ‘lone human’ is will be the deciding factor in this fight! I- I’m just  **_me_ ** . I couldn’t play a part if I wanted to!” And he most certainly does not want to get involved in this fight.

Kai and Cole appear on the opposite side of the room. Kai looks downright murderous, and Jay starts to back away.

“What’s wrong?” Zane asks.

“We lost Lloyd. And now he knows we’re onto him.” Kai growls. 

Wisely, Cole remains silent.

Kai storms across the room, and grabs Jay by the arm as he walks past, bringing the young adult with him.

Jay makes a startled squeak, but doesn’t fight back, letting himself get dragged away. “Where are we going?” 

“Not important.” Kai snarls.

Oh, he’s  **_angry_ ** angry. This is  **_not_ ** good. This is going to end horribly, this is going to end with Jay being used as a punching bag for Kai to get his anger out-

Kai slams open a door, jarring Jay from his thoughts. Then he continues walking, still pulling the Blue Ninja behind him.

Jay attempts to break his grip so he can walk on his own and isn’t being dragged across the floor, but Kai snarls at him and Jay quickly stops, letting himself be pulled around.

They go back up to the main floor, and Jay discovers that being dragged up stairs hurts like Hell.

Jay could swear that they’ve walked miles by the time Kai stops, but he knows that it hasn’t really been that far.

The demon forces another door open, and drags Jay inside a room.

The Blue Ninja looks around, tensing as he realizes where they are.

They’re in an exercise room.

So Jay  **_is_ ** going to be used as a punching bag.

Kai slams Jay against a wall. “Why’d you agree to come with me?” 

Kai’s expression isn’t as bad as it was before, although he still looks pretty upset.

“I wanted to keep my parents safe.” Jay answers. Kai- Kai already knows this. Why would he ask? Is this related to why he’s angry?

The demon's eyes are dark but soft. He… he actually  **_doesn’t_ ** look like he’s planning to rip Jay to shreds.

“But there was more to it than that, wasn’t there? Tell me there was more to it.”

Jay has to mentally force himself not to whimper. “Th- there was more to it.” He agrees. He doesn’t know what he’s agreeing to, or what it means, but Kai told him to say it, so he says it.

He’s not in the mood to die, thank you very much.

And Kai smiles. It’s dark, like it’s always been, but not quite as menacing as it was before. “I knew it.” He whispers, his eyes slowly fluttering shut.

And then he’s pressing his lips against Jay’s.

Jay tenses, trying to figure out what the  **_actual fuck_ ** is going on. 

Kai’s tongue works its way into his mouth, pressing against Jay’s teeth as it explores.

Jay forces himself to relax. Okay. This- this is fine. This is perfectly fine. When Kai said he had to do  **_anything_ ** he asked for, this was  **_not_ ** what Jay had in mind, but… he’s not really in a position to do anything about it. If this is what Kai wants, then- then Jay’s just going to have to be okay with it.

Kai pulls away, and Jay gasps for air. He only gets a moment before Kai goes in again, working his mouth open with his tongue, running it along Jay’s.

And he... he just takes it. He pushes back a little, attempting to mimic Kai because- because that’s how you’re supposed to kiss, right? It’s a two person thing. But Kai is overpowering, pressing back harder. 

Jay surrenders himself to Kai, letting the demon do whatever he wants without resistance. He lets the demon take total control, closing his eyes and allowing himself to go near limp in the Red Ninja’s grasp.

After what feels like an eternity, Kai pulls away. “How was that?” He breathes.

Jay doesn’t know what to say, so he just nods sluggishly.

Kai gives a breathy laugh. “C’mon, it’s getting late. You can stay in my room.”

And Jay’s mind in screaming out not to, to scream and push the demon away, to explain that he doesn’t want this.

But the human just nods. “Okay.” He agrees. “That sounds good.”

What else is he supposed to do? 

So Jay lets himself be brought into a dark room, where Kai continues to kiss him on the bed, his hands running over the human’s body like he needs the contact to survive. Though his mind screeches and his lungs begin to ache, he lets the demon’s rough mouth manipulate his own. After what feels like hours, Jay finally works up enough willpower to pull away. 

“We- we should get some sleep.” Jay gets out, his voice hoarse. He silently begs whatever God that might be listening for the demon to agree.

Kai nods, but he looks somewhat disappointed. “Right.” He gets up, pulling the covers down, as he lightly tugs Jay into the bed with him. “Stay with me?” He requests.

Jay gives a weak nod, ignoring his internal screaming. “Okay. Y-yeah.”

What else can he do?


	6. This Won’t End Well

Jay blinks himself awake. Woah. His bed feels unusually soft and comfortable. Not that it’s usually bad, but it feels almost like silk.

He blinks a few more times- and then he remembers exactly what happened, everything from the deal to last night.

Fuck.

Kai murmurs something in his sleep, his arms wrapped around the human as he pulls him closer.

… and Jay’s cuddling with Kai, the demon overlord. Wonderful.

What even is his life anymore?

Kai seems to sense that something’s off, and he shifts slightly as his eyes flutter open. “Mmm?” He murmurs quietly, burying his head in Jay’s chest.

Jay takes a few deep breaths, forcing himself not to tense up. He’s not entirely sure what will happen if Kai finds out that he doesn’t want…  **_this_ ** , but he’s sure it won’t be good. Best to just play along.

“G’morning.” Kai mumbles into Jay’s chest. 

“Good- heh, uh, yeah, good morning to you, too.” The Blue Ninja greets.

Aaaaaand he’s already screwed up. Wonderful.

“Something wrong?” Kai lifts his head. “Don’t worry about the others, they won’t try anything. I doubt they’ll even care.” He pauses. “Well, Cole might.”

Oh. Jay wasn’t even worried about that, but it looks like he has  **_more_ ** things to stress about! That’s just perfect.

“W-why would Cole care?” Jay gets out.

“Mmm, I think he likes you too. If you like him back, I could share.” Kai offers, though there’s something…  **_off_ ** about his voice.

Jay has to take a moment. Of course both of the scary supernatural creatures like him. Of course they do. It just wouldn’t be fun otherwise.

He follows Kai off the bed. “I- okay.”

“Okay or yes? Because there’s a difference.” Kai points out.

And it’s really an ‘Okay’. It’s really an ‘I guess’, but he can’t tell Kai that. “Yes. It’s a yes.” Jay lies, forcing a smile.

Kai smiles that dark grin of his. “You wanna tell them or should I?”

It’s obvious what he’s asking. He wants to know who’s going to share that the two of them are an item. Together.

The very thought of it makes Jay want to vomit. He doesn’t want to be with Kai- or Cole, for the matter. He doesn’t want to be in this stupid mansion. He wants no part in this. 

But since when did he have a choice?

Kai smirks at his expression. “What, don’t want me to show you off?”

And Jay goes red. His face is on fire. This is not okay, nothing about this is okay, he- he’s just not used to compliments, okay?!

Kai walks over and taps Jay’s nose, still wearing a smirk. “Boop.”

Jay falls backward into the bed, his face burning even brighter. He probably looks like a tomato at this point.

The demon laughs as he walks away toward a side room.

“Where are you going?” Jay gets out, ignoring his flushing cheeks. He gets back up from the bed and starts to follow Kai.

“Shower. I mean, you’re welcome to join me, but I want our first time to be in a bed.” The demon winks.

Jay’s sure his face is melting off. It certainly  **_feels_ ** like it is. He stumbles backward, falling onto the bed again. “I- I’m good for now, thanks.”

Kai continues smirking as he turns around and heads into the side room. The door clicks shut behind him.

But it’s a haunting reminder that Kai is going to want that. He’s going to want to- he’s going to-

God, Jay can’t even finish the thought.

He doesn’t want this. This is the furthest thing from what he wants. He’d literally rather die. And he’d kill himself, but then he’d no longer be working for Kai and his parents would be at risk.

So he’s stuck like this. He’s going to be- he’s just- 

He’s dating Kai.

Well, he’s not entirely sure it’s dating. They could just be… just be fuck-buddies.

Jay isn’t sure which of those options is worse. Both of them sound horrible. One would result in more…  **_that_ ** , but the other means that he has to date a demon. A literal demon.

Both options sound hellish. But it’s not like Jay even gets to choose which one.

And judging from Kai’s  _ ‘I’d like our first time to be in a bed’ _ comment, he’s most likely looking for a relationship.

Jay- Jay’s screwed. Both literally and metaphorically. He’s going to be screwed.

Jay curls up on the bed, fighting back tears. He can’t let Kai see him like this. He can’t let anyone know he’s not okay with this.

He takes a few deep breaths, focusing on the pattern of his breathing. It’s- it’s going to be okay. Maybe not so much for him, but his parents are safe, and in the end, that’s what matters.

It takes him a while, maybe a little under an hour, but bit by bit, he pulls himself back from the brink of a meltdown. 

Finally, he’s okay. Well, he’s not okay, but he’s stable for now.

There’s a knock on the door. Moments after the knock, with no time for any form of reply, the door opens. 

“Kai, we- Jay?” Cole demands. “The fuck are you doing in Kai’s room?”

Jay looks away, his face flushing. “Uhhhh…..” 

Cole’s eyes widen. “Oh. The two of you- oh.”

“Kai said he doesn’t mind sharing.” Jay blurts out. 

Why did he say that? Why? Why the Hell would he tell Cole that?!

Cole blinks. “He did?”

“I mean, we haven’t technically done… **_that_** yet, but…” Jay trails off.

Cole smiles and shakes his head. “You can’t even say it.” He laughs.

“I- look, I’m- I’m new at this, okay?!” Jay snaps.

The vampire laughs. “And by ‘new’, you mean your first time, don’t you.” It’s not a question. The dark glint in his eye confirms that.

“I- uh, well…” The young adult trails off.

“Kai’s going to be your first time, isn’t he?” Cole realizes. “Fuck, I’d pay to watch that.”

Jay’s face is on fire again. His life has certainly gotten a lot more…  **_confusing_ ** , to say the least. “To- to watch-“

“To watch you getting nailed by Kai, yeah.” Cole says nonchalantly, like the very idea isn’t nightmare worthy.

Jay clears his throat, ignoring the return of the panic that he had just managed to calm down. “You, uh, you wanted to talk to Kai about something?”

“Oh. I noticed that you were missing and was going to let him know. But I guess he knew where you were the whole time.” Cole shrugs.

The door to the side room opens. “Cole, the fuck are you doing here?”

“Thought Jay ran away, was going to let you know.” Cole explains as he turns around. “I’ll leave the two of you to yourselves.”

And with that, the vampire leaves the room, closing the door behind him.

Jay glances over at Kai, only to have his brain short-circuit when he realizes that  **_he’s not wearing any clothes._ **

The young adult just kind of stares for a moment, his face flushing darker. Then he looks away, looking literally  **_anywhere_ ** but at Kai.

The demon laughs. “See something you like?”

Jay doesn’t answer, hiding his face in his hands.

The Red Ninja laughs again and makes his way over to the dresser. “Didn’t take any clothes with me.” He explains.

Jay mumbles a noise of agreement, not really listening to what Kai’s saying.

Kai gets dressed, and then walks over to Jay. “So… I’m hoping we can start over a little. Not entirely, but… y’know, I don’t want you to be a  **_slave_ ** . So…. could we kinda back up a little?”

Jay- Jay doesn’t know where to go with this. What does he say? How does he act? He’s never been good at lying, and Kai being nice is only making it harder-

“Yeah. I’d like that.” He blurts out.

Wow, he really has no verbal filter today.

Kai smiles softly. “Hey, my name’s Kai. Wanna go out sometime?”

Jay forces a smile of his own. “I’d love to.” He lies.

Kai grins. “Here, lemme get you something to wear.” He goes back over to the dresser and digs around. “What size are you?”

“Men’s medium.” Jay answers. “I brought my own clothes, but you had me put them in a guest room…”

Kai shakes his head. “You can wear mine.” He decides, continuing to search through the dresser.

Jay doesn’t have it in him to argue. He’s exhausted by the day’s events. His brain quietly reminds him that it’s still morning, and barely an hour has passed since he woke up.

Kai comes back over with an outfit, a faded red t-shirt with blue jeans.

Jay nods his thanks, and starts taking his shirt off to change.

Kai watches him, an almost creepy smile on his face.

“Y- you mind?” He squeaks out.

Kai just keeps smiling. “Nah, I don’t. Go ahead.” 

“Tha- that’s not what I meant.” Jay gets out, his face flushing red again. God, at this rate he won’t have any blood in his brain.

Kai doesn’t answer, he just stands there, smiling.

Jay sighs and continues taking his shirt off. He pulls on the t-shirt, but now-

“Can you at least not watch me while I’m changing pants?” Jay stalls. He really doesn’t want to be in the same room as Kai with his pants off- much less with the demon watching.

The Red Ninja groans. “Fine.” He sighs, turning away. “Didn’t know you were such a prude.”

Jay quickly starts changing before Kai decides to turn around. He hesitates a few moments, before admitting, “I’ve never- I haven’t-“ the young adult cuts himself off, his face flushing a deeper red.

Kai turns around  **_just_ ** as Jay does the button. “You- fuck. You’re so  **_innocent_ ** !”

Jay makes a grumbling noise and gets off of the bed. “Am not.”

Kai just smiles. “Uh-huh.”

Jay blushes furiously. “Can- lets- don’t we need to work on catching the Green Ninja?” Anything to distract Kai from this. 

The demon sighs. “I guess.” He turns and makes his way out the door.

Jay quickly follows, relieved at the change in subject. Anything to get Kai off the topic of…

Anyway.

The two Ninja make their way to the kitchen. It smells like heaven itself, but that’s not a thought Jay can voice out loud. 

Once they step inside, Jay realizes its Zane doing the cooking, with Cole practically vibrating at the table as he stares at the food.

It- it’s almost  **_domestic_ ** . And Jay doesn’t like it. He doesn’t like thinking of them as people, of them having conscious thought. He preferred it when they were just monsters whose names were only spoken in hushed whispers.

Zane nods at them as they enter the room. “Breakfast will be ready shortly.”

Kai nods. “Once it is, I have an announcement to make.”

… oh come on. Really? He’s making it an  **_announcement_ ** ? Does it have to be?

Cole smirks as the two of them sit down. “Do I already know what it is?”

“Kinda,” Kai admits. “But it’s also coming with new rules.”

“Right, I figured that.” Cole nods, glancing over to Zane and the food.

Speaking of which, Zane comes over and starts setting things on the table. “Wait until I’ve got all the food down to start eating.”

Cole makes a whining noise. “But-“

“Do you want me to cook in the future?” Zane interrupts. 

Kai laughs. “Come on Cole, don’t ruin it for the rest of us.”

Jay just adjusts his plate and remains silent. He doesn’t know what to say.

Y’know, for someone who likes to talk a lot, he’s been left speechless way too many times since yesterday morning.

Kai glances over at him. “Everything okay?”

Jay forces a smile. “Just worried about Zane’s reaction.” He lies.

Kai waves him off. “Don’t be. Zane’s won’t care other than the new rules.”

“New rules?” Jay prompts, forcing his voice to remain steady.

“I’ll tell you in a minute.” The demon tells him.

Zane comes back with more food, setting it down on the table. 

“Can we eat now?” Cole asks, staring longingly at the food in front of him.

Zane nods and sits down across from Jay. “Yes. Be careful, it’s hot.”

“ **_Yes_ ** !” Cole starts reaching for the food, but Kai grabs his arm.

“Talking first.” The Red Ninja insists.

Cole groans. “Ugh. Fine.”

“So, as Cole already knows, Jay and I are together.” Kai says dramatically. “And so we’re going to be implementing some new rules.”

Zane nods. “Of course. My assumption is that the rules regarding harming Jay and other things to do with him are the things that will be changed?”

Kai nods. “Spot on. First new rule: no hurting Jay.”

Cole frowns. “But what if it’s in the heat of the moment and you lose control?”

“Depends on what you mean by ‘heat of the moment’.” Kai shoots back.

“You know what I mean. If we’re fucking-“

Jay winces.

“-and bruises are left. That okay?” Cole asks.

Kai makes a face. “Depends on if he consented to rough sex.”

Cole barks out a laugh. “You think **_either_** of us can do anything **_but_** rough when it’s a human? Our gentle isn’t quite the same as theirs.”

Oh. Oh God. So it’s not even going to be gentle. Isn’t sex supposed to be a slow, gentle, caring thing?

Apparently not. Jay’s learning all sorts of new things he wished he didn’t know!

Kai sighs. “That’s fair. But try not to hurt him badly, okay?” The demon reaches over and takes Jay’s hand, giving it what is probably meant to be a reassuring squeeze.

Jay is fighting back tears, forcing himself to stay calm with a relatively neutral expression.

When he looks up, Zane is staring at him, his icy blue eyes seeming to look right through him. 

Jay quickly looks away.

Cole nods. “I said ‘heat of the moment’, I’m obviously not going to do anything on purpose.”

Kai glances over to Jay. “Anything I said so far that you don’t agree with?”

Jay shakes his head. “Nope.” He lies. He’s going to have to get used to lying. As of now, it makes him feel guilty.

But he’s doing what’s necessary to survive. And besides, his lies aren’t hurting anything. It’s not like he’s saying anything that’ll cause someone harm.

Well, harm to anyone but himself. He can’t avoid getting hurt at this point.

“Any other rules?” Cole prompts.

“Yeah. He’s the Blue Ninja, a member of the team. He’s not to be considered a slave or be bossed around.” Kai explains.

“... so I can’t make him clean my room?” Cole double checks.

“No. No you can’t.” Kai confirms.

Cole nods. “Anything else?”

“No other rules, I don’t think. Unless you have something you want to add?” Kai turns to Jay.

And Jay wants to ask if his parents are still safe. He wants to ask how the new rules affect their deal.

But he just smiles. “No, that sounds good.”

It’s hard to believe that Kai has killed over half of the people in Ninjago, that millions of lives were lost at the demon’s hands. But Jay knows what he’s done. He knows not to get too comfortable. 

Kai’s attitude towards Jay could change at any moment. He has to be careful. He has to stay at the top of his game.

“Zane, could you stop looking at Jay like he’s secretly the Green Ninja?” Kai glances over at the Nindroid as Cole starts loading his plate.

“Remember when I mentioned I knew who the ‘lone human’ was?” Zane reminds.

“Oh yeah! Who is it?” Cole asks, setting his plate down and picking up a fork.

“It’s Jay.” Zane replies. “Jay is the ‘lone human’.”

Kai blinks. “I’m sorry, what?”

“I’m not the ‘lone human’! We’ve already had this discussion! I’m not nearly powerful enough to do anything- and that’s if I wanted to!” Jay huffs.

Oh, how he would  **_love_ ** to take down Kai… but that would get him killed. Besides, Kai is currently in a… favorable mood. It wouldn’t do to risk making him mad.

Kai laughs. “Well, if Jay’s the ‘lone human’, then I guess we’re in luck. He’s on our side.”

Jay nods. 

“It would still be a good idea to keep an eye on him.” Zane recommends.

“My boyfriend isn’t siding with the Green Ninja, Zane.” Kai scoffs. 

“Still-“

“Jay isn’t going rogue on us.” Cole says around a mouthful of food.

Jay’s stomach rumbles, interrupting the argument. 

Everyone turns to look at him. Jay looks down.

“We didn’t feed you yesterday!” Kai realizes. “Fuck, I forgot that humans need food.”

“Y-you don’t need food?” Jay asks.

Kai takes Jay’s plate and starts putting food on it. He smiles and shakes his head.

“We don’t **_need_ ** it, but we can have it without negative effects and it tastes too good to give up.” Cole explains, taking another bite.

Zane is still staring at Jay. His eyes seem to pierce through to his very soul. 

Kai sets the plate back down in front of Jay. “Here, Zane makes the best food.”

Jay reaches for his fork, but before he can take a bite, Zane is talking.

“Could I speak with you for a moment?” 

“I mean, yeah?” Jay agrees.

“Alone.” Zane amends.

Kai narrows his eyes. “What do you have to say to him that can’t be said in front of us?”

“It will only take a moment. I’m not stupid enough to try hurting him after you have direct orders not to. I just need to speak with him for a moment.” Zane doesn’t look away from Jay.

Kai glances at Jay. “You okay with that? You don’t have to go with him.”

Jay looks up warily, making timid eye contact with the Nindroid. “W- we can talk.” 

Zane stands up from the table, and walks out of the room. “Follow.” He instructs.

And so Jay does. He lets himself be led away from Kai, into a separate part of the mansion. Finally, Zane stops. He turns around, facing Jay.

“I needed to be far enough away that they couldn’t hear us.” The Nindroid explains.

“Cole could be in the shadows.” Jay points out nervously. What could Zane want to talk about?

“Cole’s preoccupied with food.” Zane dismisses the idea.

“Why- what do you want to talk about?” Jay asks, fidgeting nervously.

“You and Kai.”

“Is this a shovel talk?” Jay looks up. Well, he doesn’t have to worry about having a blush- he’s not sure if he has any blood left in his face.

“No. You don’t actually like Kai.” Zane proclaims.

Well, he’s right, but uh,  **_hey_ ** ?? 

“Wh- what are you talking about?” The Blue Ninja gives a nervous laugh.

“You’re scared of him. Don’t try lying to me, I have already analyzed your microexpressions.” Zane informs him. 

“I- I, uh…” Jay looks down, his thoughts racing. He’s screwed. Kai is going to kill him for lying. Damn it, Jay was just trying to avoid getting hurt and now he’s dug himself into a hole that he can’t crawl out of-

“I won’t tell him.” Zane reassures the Blue Ninja.

Wait… what?

“Y- you won’t?” Jay looks up hopefully.

“I need something from you, though.” Zane adds.

Oh. So that’s what this is. Blackmail.

Jay has discovered a new thing! He does  **_not_ ** like being blackmailed!

“Wha- what is it?” Jay asks nervously.

“I need you to help me keep the Green Ninja alive.”

Wait… what?


	7. Cole Fucks Things Up

“You- what?” Jay demands.

“I need you to help me keep the Green Ninja alive. Kai wants to kill him. I need him alive.” Zane explains.

“What for?” Jay presses. Why the Hell would Zane want to keep the Green Ninja, the savior of Ninjago, alive?

“You’re not in a position to be asking questions.” Zane points out. He holds out his hand. “Do we have a deal?”

Jay sighs, but shakes the Nindroid’s hand. “You have a deal.” He agrees.

What mess has he gotten himself into now?

The two of them make their way back to the dining room, Jay shifting all the way.

By the time they get back, over half the food is gone. Cole is on what looks to be his fifth plate.

Kai brightens when Jay enters the room. But his face quickly switches to one of concern. “Is everything okay?”

Jay quickly nods. “Ev- everything’s fine! Everything’s perfectly fine.” He lies, sitting down at the table. He starts eating, hoping to avoid further questioning.

“Zane, what did you talk about?” Kai demands, anger creeping into his voice.

“Nothing important.” Zane lies smoothly. “I was offering to help him refine his elemental powers, and didn’t want him to be embarrassed if he didn’t want to train.”

Kai glances at Jay. “Then why does he look like you just killed his family in front of him?”

Jay flinches at the word choice. It’s a reminder of what might happen if Jay doesn’t comply with Zane’s request.

Zane shrugs. “I think he was concerned over what I was going to say.”

“There’s more to it than that.” Kai snarls.

“Th- there isn’t. Zane’s telling the truth.” Jay cuts in.

“Jay, you can tell me-“

“I  **_am_ ** telling you. Really, Zane just offered to train me and I’m just scared of getting the heck beaten out of me.” Jay lies.

He’s getting better at this. Lying wasn’t a skill he ever thought he’d need, but…. look at him now. These lies are the only thing keeping him alive.

Kai just sighs. “If you say so…”

Jay goes back to his food, and the rest of the meal is spent in silence. 

Finally, Jay finishes eating. He pushes his plate aside while Cole goes for his upteenth helping.

The four of them sit in silence.

Minutes pass without a word. Is this awkward silence or a comfortable pause? Jay’s not sure, and it’s bothering him.

Cole finishes eating. “Hey Jay, wanna go for a walk? I can show you around a little bit.” 

Jay nods. Anything to get out of here. “Yeah, that sounds nice.”

Cole walks out of the room, and Jay is quick to follow. They wander aimlessly for a while, but then Cole turns to Jay with a dark look in his eyes.

“I heard the conversation. Zane forgot to account for my enhanced hearing combined with the vents. I heard everything the two of you said.” The vampire hisses.

Jay freezes, and Cole shoves him into a wall, his eyes boring into Jay’s. “Give me one good reason for me not to tell Kai.” He growls.

“Uhhhhh…” Jay isn’t sure what to say. How the Hell can he get out of this situation?  **_Can_ ** he get out of this situation?

Probably not. He backed himself into a corner, dug himself into a hole. There’s nothing he can do now except hope Cole is merciful.

“Why shouldn’t I?” Cole demands, pushing Jay against the wall further. Jay winces at the pressure on his shoulders.

“Cole, please-“

“You’re lying to him!” Cole hisses.

“I didn’t have a choice!” Jay protests.

“Oh come on, you-“

“If I don’t do  **_everything_ ** Kai wants, my parents end up dead. This is what he wanted, so I gave it to him! I don’t know what I’ll do if he- Cole,  **_please_ ** !” Jay is near tears. As soon as Kai slammed him against the wall in the gym, he didn’t have any choices left. It was lie or let his parents get killed.

Cole pauses, looking conflicted. “I see how you got here, but that doesn’t make it okay.”

“What else was I supposed to do?” Jay protests. “I didn’t exactly have a lot of options!”

Cole hesitates a moment- and then steps back, letting go of Jay. “I still have to tell him.”

“Cole, please, I’ll do anything-“

“I’m sorry.” Cole turns away, walking back the way the two of them came.

Jay runs after him, grabbing onto his arm, trying to slow him down. “Cole, listen-“

“Look Jay, I’m sorry. I see how this isn’t fair and how you got backed into a corner. But I can’t lie to Kai about something like this.” Cole explains.

“It’s not lying, it’s-“

“A lie of omission is still a lie.” Cole shakes his head and pulls Jay off of him. “Wait here.”

“I-“

“That’s an order. Kai never explicitly told you that you could ignore those, only that we weren’t supposed to give them. If you don’t want to break your agreement, I recommend you stay here.” Cole snarls. Then he turns and continues walking back to the dining room.

Jay wants to follow, wants to try to stop him, but the Black Ninja is right. Kai never said that he could ignore orders.

So Jay just stands there, tears in his eyes. He has no choice. There’s nothing he can do. 

The Blue Ninja falls to his knees, putting his head in his hands. Tears start to fall, dripping down his face and onto the floor.

“I’m sorry.” He whispers. It’s not addressed to Kai- no, he could care less about Kai.

He’s apologizing to his parents, to the people of Ninjago City. He tried. He tried so hard. He didn’t even last two days before he fucked up. 

Everyone he’s ever known is going to be killed. And it’s all his fault. There had to have been a way out, something he could have done that he didn’t see. But he didn’t figure it out, and now… people are going to die, and it’s all his fault.

“I’m sorry.” He repeats, his voice breaking. “I’m so sorry.”

Footsteps sound down the hall, and from Jay’s spot on the floor, he spots part of the legs of Kai’s gi.

He’s roughly picked up from the floor and slammed into a wall.

People seem to like shoving him against walls. Is it some kind of thing supernatural beings like to do?

Kai is in his face. “Is it true?” He demands.

“I-“

“Is what Cole told me true?” Kai growls.

Jay nods miserably. “I didn’t mean to-“

“Fine. If that’s how you want to play it.” Kai narrows his eyes, that dark anger glistening.

Jay opens his mouth to respond, to apologize, to beg for mercy, but Kai leans in and roughly kisses him. His teeth sink into Jay’s lip, and the taste of copper fills the Blue Ninja’s mouth. Jay tries to pull away from the pain instinctively, but he’s up against the wall and Kai holds him tight.

The demon’s tongue forces its way into his mouth, stealing Jay’s air. The Blue Ninja once again tries to pull away, but he’s getting nowhere, and Kai growls into his mouth at the attempt.

Finally, the Red Ninja pulls away, letting the human catch his breath. But the reprieve lasts only a moment, and Kai is soon back, biting and pulling Jay against him. The cycle repeats, Kai kissing and biting before pulling away, only to return with a vengeance. By the time the demon finally lets go and steps back, Jay is dizzy and weak from the lack of air. 

He gasps and starts to fall over, only to be caught in Kai’s arms. “We’re not done yet.” The demon growls.

Jay thinks he might be able to see Cole in the shadows out of the corner of his eye, but he’s not entirely sure if he’s there between the dizziness and the darkness wreathed around him.

He’s not even entirely sure what Kai said, but the demon picks him up and throws him over his shoulder, walking off.

Jay doesn’t resist, letting himself be taken away. He’s not sure he could fight back even if he wanted to- and considering that fighting could break the deal, he most certainly does  **_not_ ** want to start something.

Of course, he’s assuming that the deal isn’t already broken… 

The demon carries him away, in a direction that Jay slowly starts to recognize.

Once he realizes where he’s being taken, he starts to struggle, attempting to free himself from Kai’s grasp. Screw the deal, if Kai’s going to do what he thinks he is… 

The demon doesn’t even acknowledge his effort, his attempts futile in the face of one so powerful.

The door to Kai’s room is thrown open, and the Blue Ninja is thrown onto the bed.

“I- Kai, please-“

“New rule: you’re not allowed to lie. Not to me, not to Cole, not to Zane. Only person you can lie to is the Green Ninja. Is that understood?” Kai growls, slamming the door shut.

“Perfectly.” Jay whispers. He knows what’s about to happen.

Then something clicks. What he was so afraid of- he has to ask. He can’t avoid what’s going to happen to him, but maybe he can still protect his parents.

“Is- Is our deal still on?” Jay asks nervously, his voice barely a murmur.

Kai stalks his way over to Jay, his eyes flashing orange, mimicking the fire that is his element. “Yes.” The demon allows. “Our agreement is still in place.”

Jay breathes a sigh of relief. His parents are safe. It doesn’t matter what happens to him, as long as his family’s sa-

Kai pounces, taking advantage of Jay’s distraction. He pins Jay to the bed, hovering over him. 

He kisses the human, his tongue going over the fresh bite marks before making more, deep bites that tang Jay’s mouth with the taste of iron.

As he’s kissing, the demon starts taking off Jay’s clothes. He pulls back for a moment, letting the human gasp for air.

“I’ll just have to  **_make_ ** you love me. Make it so that you can’t live without me. I’ll be your everything. You won’t be able to function without me by your side.” The Red Ninja murmurs.

Jay- Jay doesn’t like the sound of that. He’s not entirely sure what Kai’s planning, but whatever it is, he’s probably not going to enjoy it.

Jay’s shirt is ripped and tossed to the side carelessly, his pants torn off and discarded in the same manner.

This is it. This is his last chance, his last attempt to convince Kai not to go through with it. “Kai, please, I-  **_wha_ ** !” His sentence is cut off as the demon starts licking over his pale skin, sucking on some parts and biting others. 

“Kai- Kai please-“

“That’s right, beg for me.” The demon murmurs against Jay’s skin. He continues licking and biting, slowly making his way down Jay’s chest. 

A bite breaks skin, leaving behind crimson blood over the cream color of Jay’s chest.

Jay whimpers, biting his lip to avoid crying out in pain. Tears sting his eyes and start to roll down the side of his face.

Kai licks at the bloody injury for a moment, before continuing his path down Jay’s stomach. 

The licks leave behind tender flesh that grows goosebumps from the cold, and the bites sting and make the human wince.

Kai drags his hands down Jay’s sides, reaching down and slowly pulling down the Blue Ninja’s boxers and casually tossing them to the side.

The demon wraps a hand around Jay’s member and gives it a few light tugs, making it stiffen.

Jay tries to pull away. He doesn’t want to enjoy this. He doesn’t want this, period! 

But then Kai gives the head a small kitten lick as he strokes the base, and Jay feels himself start to grow impossibly hard.

“Kai- Kai please! Please don’t do t-“ He’s cut off by a tug on his balls, and the Blue Ninja lets out a moan.

The demon smirks, pulling back with one last kiss to the member. “Seems like you’re enjoying this a lot more than you say you are.”

“Kai- Kai, I don’t want this, please-“

Kai’s gaze darkens, and he reaches over to the nightstand, pulling out a bottle of…  **_something_ ** . He pours a clear liquid over his fingers, before going to press at Jay’s- at his-

Jay makes a squeaking noise and attempts to pull away, but Kai’s other hand goes to the human’s hip, holding him firmly in place. 

A single finger works its way into Jay’s asshole, with a slight burn accompanying it.

“Agh- hey! St- stop!” Jay tries to pull away once more, but is again stopped by Kai’s tight grip.

The demon smirks, but the mirth doesn’t reach his eyes. He leans back down and gives Jay’s member another kitten lick as he wiggles his finger around, a burn accompanying every twitch and movement it makes.

Yet Jay remains impossibly hard as Kai licks at the head of his cock, wiggling his finger all the while. After a few more moments of this, another slick finger starts pressing against Jay’s hole.

“No- no more.” Jay begs. “Kai, I’m begging you, please, please no more. Pl-“

Kai pulls his mouth away and Jay has to stop himself from whimpering at the loss. He doesn’t want this, damn it!

“You don’t really want me to stop. Deep down, you want this.” The demon murmurs seductively.

“I don’t, Kai please,  **_please_ ** -“

The second finger works it’s way in, and Kai starts digging around like he’s looking for something.

The demon smiles. “It’s okay, Jay. It’s okay to want it. Just sit back and relax. I’ll take care of you.”

“Kai-  **_hah_ ** !” Jay is cut off by his own cry of pleasure as Kai pushes against something inside him. 

Kai sits up a little, his mouth moving farther away from Jay’s member. But he presses against that spot again and again and  **_again_ ** and-

Jay’s vision starts blurring as he nears his breaking point. He doesn’t want this, he doesn’t want this, god, please-

There’s a third finger pushing against his hole, slicked up by the clear substance from before. Jay can’t even look to see what’s going on, he’s just moaning as he jerks his hips, desperately trying to get friction on his member.

The third finger presses inside, and Kai slams all three against that spot, and Jay cries out even louder. 

He whimpers quietly and tries to pull away. No matter how good it feels, he doesn’t want  **_Kai_ ** , the demon overlord, inside him. He wants nothing to do with this!

“That’s it, you’re almost there.” Kai murmurs quietly, working his fingers  **_right at that spot_ ** .

“N-no.” The Blue Ninja whimpers. 

Kai doesn’t respond to his plea, instead choosing to continue to massage that point inside him. He leans forward until his mouth is right by Jay’s ear. “That’s it, Jay, you’re so close. So close…” He trails off.

“Ka-  **_umph_ ** .” The human cuts himself off with another moan.

“Cum for me.” Kai whispers into Jay’s ear.

Jay’s vision goes white, and he gasps as he hits his climax. The world around him fades away into a sea of ecstasy. It lasts only for a few moments, however, and Jay is left shaking and whimpering in its wake.

“Good.” Kai murmurs. He slips his fingers out of Jay’s hole.

Everything is blurry. Jay- he’s so tired. The bed is silky soft, and he’s nice and warm. Everything starts to fade away, but he’s jolted back to the world when his legs are spread wider, one on each side of the demon. Something larger than the fingers starts pressing against his hole, and his breathing catches as he realizes what’s going on.

“You ready?” Kai whispers.

Jay whimpers and tries to pull away, but he doesn’t get very far.

Kai presses further against him, and the large, blunt thing- Jay refuses to acknowledge what it is- starts to push inside him.

The stretch burns as it opens him wider and wider. It’s slick and wet, which lessens the pain some, but it’s still forcing him open, pushing  **_into his ass_ ** . A place where Kai’s dick  **_should not be going_ ** .

And Kai is breathing heavily into Jay’s ear, murmuring praise at how good Jay’s doing, how well he’s taking him.

Jay feels his face flush a hotter red at his words.

The demon’s cock keeps pushing him open, further and further, deeper and deeper. It pushes past that spot inside him, rubbing against it.

Centimeter by centimeter, he sinks into Jay, moaning lewd things into his ear. It’s the worst kind of torture, the pain accompanied by the knowledge of what Kai’s doing to him, of how he’s being  **_violated_ ** .

Warm hands rest on the sides of his thighs, fingers digging into his skin.

“First Spinjitzu Master, you’re tight. Fuck, feels so good. Bet I can make you feel this good, fuck you senseless into the sheets.” 

And then he feels the demon’s hips against his own, and Jay breathes a sigh of relief in time with Kai’s moan as they both realize the immortal has sunk all the way in.

“So good for me, such a good little cockslut, taking me so well.” Kai murmurs into Jay’s ear.

The Blue Ninja makes a whimpering noise at the words and tries to pull away. “ ‘m not a cockslut.” Jay mutters as he tries to crawl away from Kai.

The demon grabs him, and Jay’s progress is quickly reversed. Kai pulls out a little, and Jay relaxes, thinking that this is the end of it. 

And then Kai pushes back in, his dick rubbing  **_right_ ** against that spot.

Jay cries out at the mixture of pleasure and pain, not entirely sure where the line between the two is. 

“That’s it.” Kai murmurs. “You enjoying yourself?”

Jay weakly shakes his head. “Nng…”

Against his wishes, he feels himself growing hard again- a feeling that’s accompanied by a spike of pain and discomfort. He mentally kicks himself for the moans that escape him- he doesn’t want to enjoy this!

The demon wraps his hand around Jay’s dick, pumping it a few times to prompt him back to full mast. Once it is, he sits up, his hand running through the human’s hair, gripping it tightly.

“You sure look like you are.” Kai gives a particularly rough hit to his insides, but it doesn’t cause much pain. Instead, it sends waves of pleasure down his spine.

More moans escape him with the constant friction against that one spot inside him, and Jay silently berates himself for enjoying it. He doesn’t want this!

Kai slowly pulls in and out, continuing to get that damned spot with every roll of his hips. “And you sound like it, too. You look so blissed out, moaning for me.”

The rhythmic thrusts roll against the human’s hips, with the- the  **_thing_ ** inside him rubbing right against that pleasure-causing point. Clenching his teeth, he tries to think about something else, something other than the dick that’s inside him and the agonizing satisfaction it’s causing.

Kai continues to pull out just the tiniest fraction before pressing back in. His hands clench the young adult’s hips with unmatched intensity, and Jay’s sure that he’ll be covered in bruises. But as of right now, that’s the last thing on his mind.

And then Kai grins that menacing grin. “Let’s see just how loud I can make you scream.”

Before Jay can ask what that means, Kai is roughly pulling out and  **_slamming_ ** back in, causing the human to cry out. Each rough thrust makes Kai’s cock drag against that spot deep inside him. He’s not entirely sure if he's in excruciating pain or deep in the throes of pleasure as Kai thrusts in and out, his hips beating against Jay’s. 

“Kai, Kai, waiT!” His plea turns into a cry, and he silently curses himself for giving the demon what he wants.

“So tight and wet.” Kai pants. “You’re my little  **_cockslut_ ** .” He puts emphasis on the final word, continuing to roughly fuck the young adult. The demon roughly tugs on his hair, but Jay barely notices it. “Made for me. Perfect for me. My cock stretching you out, you take me so well, doing so good for me.” 

And Jay’s sobbing, silently pleading for mercy. At some point, he stopped trying to escape and just let himself lay there, taking it. Kai’s cock reaches deep inside him, slamming in so far it feels like it’s knocking his guts around.

“K- Kai pleaSE-“ Once again, his beg is turned to a cry of pleasure. 

“I gotcha, fuck, you look so good like this, wish I could just take you forever. You’d like that, wouldn’t you? To be fucked day in and day out, just a toy for me to use, just a hole to be fucked.”

He winces at the words, practically shuddering at the idea of being Kai’s toy. But a small voice in the back of his mind reminds him that he already is.

The burning ache inside him mixes with hot pleasure, making the true feeling hard to understand- not that Jay currently has enough conscious thought to worry about it.

Jay hates the way he’s moaning and crying out, hates the way his body begs for more. He needs to escape this, he needs to get the fuck out of here-

The demon tugs Jay up by his hair, then leans in to press his lips against Jay’s, pushing his tongue inside, stealing his air. The human whimpers into Kai’s mouth as the pounding hips continue their steady pace, driving deep into Jay. The lack of oxygen isn’t helping his headspace, and Jay once again tries to escape. 

Kai pulls back from the kiss- if the rough thing he just did could even be called that- without the slightest break in his rhythm. He lets go of the human’s hair, letting him fall back down to the mattress. “Fuck, so good, you’re so tight and wet, it’s like you were made for this, were made for me.”

“I- I wasn’t- I’m not-“ Jay fumbles to find the right words, his brain too fuzzy to think straight.

“Made for this.” The demon repeats in a breathy voice, the rough pounding of his hips speeding up. “Made to be  **_fucked_ ** . I’m just glad I got to you first. Glad I got to make you mine.”

Kai wraps his hand around Jay’s cock, and starts to jerk him off in time with the beating of his hips.

“N-no. D- don’t!” Jay begs. He doesn’t want this, he doesn’t want to enjoy this, he doesn’t want to be-

A particularly rough thrust jolts him from his thoughts, and he cries out, desperately trying to push the demon away.

“So good, fuck, the best I’ve ever had, so fucking good for me.” Kai murmurs, ignoring Jay’s futile escape attempts. “You look amazing like this, so good and fucked out. Fuck, beg for me, ask me to fuck you harder.”

The human flinches. He doesn’t want- no! He can’t, he  **_won’t_ ** , someone save him from this nightmare, he needs to get out of here-

His thoughts are cut off as everything goes white once more, the world fading away. The rush of pleasure is mixed, pain wracking his body along with the waves of ecstasy. But he’s rudely dragged back to the real world by the continuance of the thrusts.

Jay blinks rapidly, trying to get the tears out of his eyes. The world around him spins and shakes, and yet another whimper escapes him. “Kai, stop, please-“

“That’s not what I told you to say.” The demon lets go of Jay’s dick, but continues thrusting with his own. 

Jay whimpers, wincing as his spent cock takes interest in the pleasure coming from that spot inside him. It hurts, it hurts so much, but that doesn’t seem to matter. His dick aches along with his ass, and the human bites back a curse.

“C’mon, beg for me. You want it, I know you do. Ask me to fuck you harder, to fuck you until you can’t walk straight.” Kai demands.

The human knows that he doesn’t have a choice. He has to do what Kai tells him to do. But he doesn’t want- he can’t ask for-

“Beg for me.” Kai insists. “Beg, insist on being fucked  **_hard_ ** , hard enough that you’ll be feeling me for weeks.”

“I- I don’t want- stop, please-“ Jay whimpers, one hand coming up to wipe his eyes free of tears.

“You want it, I know you do. Beg for it, beg me to treat you like you’re a slut, a dime-a-dozen whore.” Kai pants. His thrusts slow some, not as slow as they were before, but slightly slower. It lessens the pain some, but Jay doesn’t relax. 

The human attempts to push Kai off of him yet again, and the demon gives him a sharp look at the attempt. “C’mon Jay, I already know you want it. Just ask.”

“Kai, just let- lemme go, please,  **_please_ ** -“

“Fine. We’ll do this your way.” The demon growls. He pulls out, and Jay breathes a sigh of relief. But to his dismay, Kai just flips him over, pressing the human’s face into the sheets. He raises Jay’s hips, and shoves himself all the way back inside without a moment's hesitation.

Jay cries out, trying to drag himself away from the rough intrusion, but Kai just fucks him into the mattress, each thrust rocking his body. The rough pounding is much, much harder than it was, and Jay finds himself fighting back tears.

There’s no part of his body that isn’t screaming out in pain from the rough treatment. But Kai doesn’t slow, he just picks up speed and fucks the human with unmatched intensity.

“Fuck, you’re even better than I imagined.” He pants. “Can’t believe this is your first time. Fuck, this is your first time. If we’re lucky, my cock’ll be the only one you ever have. Can’t wait to see what you’ll look like bouncing on it, screaming out my name.”

“I don- don’t want-“

“You will.” Kai promises. “One day, you’ll be begging for my cock, begging for anything I’ll give you.”

The human whimpers, silently praying to whatever god that may be listening for this to be a dream. The waves of hot pleasure crash down on him, and his body welcomes it, but he can’t help but start to sob. He doesn’t want this, no matter how good it feels!

Though it aches, his cock starts to stiffen once again, and it only takes a few hits to that spot inside for him to reach full mast.

Thick, wet tears cover his face, but if Kai can see them, he pays it no mind.

Jay once again attempts to free himself from the demon’s clutches, but he doesn’t give an inch, pressing the human’s face down into the sheets while his other hand holds onto his hips. Jay is well and truly trapped.

“That’s it, scream for me.” Kai pants. “Scream on my cock, fuck, scream loud enough for all of Ninjago to hear you, to know you’re  **_mine_ ** .”

Jay didn’t even realize he was screeching, his body desperately rocking back into the thrusts as he shrieks from the feelings that rush through him.

“I- I’m close. Fuck, say my name. Say you want me.” The demon demands.

“Nng- I don’t-“ Jay begins, but as the pleasure starts to overwhelm him, he comes to a realization. If he just does what Kai asks, it’ll all be over. 

He doesn’t have much of a choice.

“K- Kai-“ The human breathes, hating himself for it.

The demon’s thrusts pick up for a moment, and then a hot, burning hot liquid is pouring inside him, and the pounding of his hips stops entirely.

Kai releases Jay from his death grip. Slowly, ever so slowly, he starts to pull his dick out of the human. “Fuck.” He whispers. 

Jay feels almost like he’s run a marathon. He’s just so tired. 

Kai pulls the rest of the way out. Jay suddenly feels empty inside, and he finds himself clenching down on air.

Without Kai holding his hips up, Jay crumples down to the bed as he goes limp.

The liquid inside him- Jay knows what it is, he just doesn’t want to think about it- starts leaking out.

Kai gives a light chuckle as he looks down at Jay. But then, as he seems to realize something, he flips the human over onto his back. 

A hand reaches out and lightly brushes over his aching cock. “That’s quite the stamina you’ve got there. Fuck, it looks painful. Let me help you with it.”

Jay whimpers, propping himself up on his elbows as he attempts to back away from the demon. “N- no more.” He whispers. “Please, just-“

Kai presses a finger to his lips. “Shhh, lemme take care of you.”

He draws his hand back, and slowly moves down the human’s body, his fingertips lightly trailing across his skin.

The demon stops when his head is level with Jay’s member. He looks up at the young adult, smirking. “You’re gonna love this.”

He moves down, keeping eye contact with the human all the while. Jay attempts to push him away, and he responds with a glare. 

“Hold still.” He orders. And so, with much reluctance, Jay brings his hands to his sides, clenching his fists. His entire body trembles, and he starts to cry once more.

Without warning, Kai quickly darts down, wrapping his mouth around the young adult’s dick. The wet heat around his cock seems to almost convulse as the demon swallows, his tongue massaging every bit it can reach.

Jay whimpers, squeezing his eyes shut. No, no, no, this can’t be real. It  **_can’t_ ** be! Yet no matter how much he tries to block it out, he can’t ignore the sweet rush of pleasure he’s getting from the demon.

No, he doesn’t want this! He needs to get away, he has to get away! Eyes flying open, the human once again attempts to shove Kai off of him. He wants the demon to just  **_leave_ ** and let Jay soak his dick in ice water and sob on the floor.

Kai pulls off of him, giving the young adult a glare as he wipes at the saliva around his mouth. “Didn’t I tell you to hold still?”

Jay whimpers, full on sobbing at this point as he attempts to get as far from the demon as possible. “Please, please, stop, I don’t want this! I don’t want this.” The last part is spoken in a hushed whisper.

“Shh, just hold still. That’s an order, okay?” The demon gives him a scalding glare that doesn’t match his soft tone, pulling the human back to where he was before.

Jay lets himself be manipulated and manhandled until Kai is satisfied, ignoring the way that his mind screams. He needs to get the Hell out of here!

“That’s it.” The demon speaks in a low tone, his voice almost soothing. “Just relax.”

The young adult whimpers, closing his eyes once more. Maybe if he hopes hard enough, he’ll wake up back at the junkyard, and this’ll all have been a bad dream.

But the feeling of the demon’s warm breath on his cock is all too real. As he licks a hot stripe from base to head, Jay desperately tries to think of anything else, anything other than Kai and what he’s doing.

The feeling of Kai sucking him off is like nothing he’s ever experienced, and it’s starting to make him lightheaded. He gasps and moans with the movements of the demon’s tongue.

Kai seems to try to say something, or maybe he’s just humming- but whatever it is, it sends vibrations coursing through his cock, and Jay lets out a throaty moan. He knows the way he gasps and groans will only encourage the demon, but he can’t help it. It just feels so goddamn  **_good_ ** .

He can feel himself coming closer and closer to the edge, despite the pain that accompanies it. But the mixture of good and bad feelings only seems to make him enjoy it more.

What the fuck is  **_wrong_ ** with him?!

Kai’s hands reach up, pinning his hips to the bed. Jay didn’t even notice that he was bucking up into the demon’s mouth, and the realization makes him feel disgusting. He doesn’t want this! Why is his body doing this?! He just wants to go home. Please, god,  **_anyone_ ** , just let him go home.

He opens his eyes, looking down at the Red Ninja. The young adult curses himself for noticing how goddamn **_hot_ ** the demon looks with his lips wrapped around his cock. This isn’t fair. Who decided this was okay?!

“Kai…” Jay whispers. But he doesn’t bother to finish the plea. The demon won’t listen to him, he’ll just drag it out even longer. 

The Red Ninja pulls off with a wet popping noise. He looks up at the human, his face flushed red. “You look amazing.” The demon murmurs. “Say my name again?”

Jay squeezes his eyes shut, tilting his head back with a whimper. Great, now Kai thinks he’s asking for more. He just keeps on making things worse! 

He can feel the demon shifting his position, and the hot breathing that hovered over him is gone. “It’s almost unfair. Who gave you the right to be so sexy?” He jokes, his voice still low and soft. A hand is suddenly running through his hair, and Jay peeks his eyes open, only to find the demon’s face right in front of his own.

And then Kai kisses him, working his tongue inside. The musky, earthy,  **_disgusting_ ** taste of the young adult's own cock fills his mouth.

He tries to pull away from the demon, but he can’t even get a centimeter. After what feels like an eternity, Kai draws back. He keeps his face close, his dark eyes flashing amber as they take in the mess that Jay must look. 

“If only you could see yourself like this.” The demon breathes, his face  **_way_ ** too close to the human’s. “First Spinjitzu Master, the things you do to me…” He trails off, leaning in for another kiss.

And so Jay’s mouth is dominated by the demon once more, that disgusting taste making him want to vomit.

His cock throbs from the lack of attention and overstimulation, but Jay does his best to tune it out. When will this all be over? It feels like the demon plans to keep using him until the end of time, relentlessly getting him off even after he has nothing left.

Kai pulls back from the kiss, shifting downward until his mouth is once more aligned with the young adult’s dick. He gives Jay a quick wink before he brings his head down once more.

Jay closes his eyes, not wanting to look. But he can’t block out the feeling of Kai’s mouth and the sinful things it does to his cock.

He whimpers at the overstimulation, but at the same time, it feels so good, to the point where it’s driving him insane. He squeezes his eyes shut tighter. This has to be a dream. There’s no way this is real! He can’t be- Kai isn’t- 

His fists are clenched by his sides, his body strung tight like a bow. But despite the way the demon violates him, he stays still, making no move to push him away. He doesn’t have a choice. If he keeps up his defense, Kai might end the deal, and he can’t risk that.

So all he can do is lay there and take it.

Tears stream down his face as the demon brings him closer and closer to the edge. Kai moans around his cock, sending vibrations up it. Jay shudders at the sensation, but it feels so good.

How can he be enjoying this? He doesn’t want anything to do with this! How-

He feels himself hit the point of no return, and the world goes white once again, his cock throbbing as it spews the little cum it had left. The demon doesn’t pause, he just keeps sucking him down.

Jay gasps for air, his eyes flying open. No, he can’t do it again, let it end, just let it end-!

Kai pulls off of him, licking his lips. “You look incredible.” He murmurs. He crawls up the human’s body, pressing a light kiss against his cheek. “Wish we could just do this forever.”

Jay silently thanks whatever god that may exist for the fact that can’t. He’s so tired, the world is spinning, and his entire body throbs and aches. This is a nightmare, one that he’ll never be able to erase from his mind.

“But we can go one more time.” The demon decides. “You’re just too good to resist.”

Jay whimpers. Oh, god. What’s Kai going to do now?

Kai flips him onto his stomach, before laying on his back himself. “C’mere.”

Hesitantly, Jay crawls on top of the demon. But when his head is level with his chest, Kai shakes his head, a small smile on his face. “Lower.” He instructs.

Jay feels a flash of fear. Oh, oh no. Kai isn’t going to- he’s gonna make him… 

The human slowly goes lower, down until he’s between Kai’s legs, cock in front of his face. 

Kai props himself up on his elbows. “Go on.”

Jay trembles. No. He can’t do this. He  **_can’t_ ** . He needs to get out of here, use some excuse, find something,  **_anything_ ** , to get him out of this situation.

“Ka- Kai, I don't think I can-“

“You don’t have to get it all the way in.” The demon ‘reassures’ him. “Just until it hits the back of your throat.”

Jay whimpers, looking down at the cock in front of him. This is going to happen no matter what he does, so maybe he should just get it over with.

He glances up at Kai, but the demon’s smile seems almost sadistic. He shudders, turning back to the task at hand. Right. He should just do it. Stop thinking and just act. The more he thinks about it, the more he wants to make a break for it. 

Hesitantly, he gives a light lick to the head of it, drawing back immediately after. Yep, tastes just as bad as he was expecting.

Kai muffles a groan, shifting his hips. “C’mon, little more than that.”

Jay feels tears prick at his eyes. How did his life come to this? But he obliges with the demon’s request- er,  **_demand_ ** , giving his cock another small lick. It tastes foul, and the pre-cum just makes it worse. He feels like he wants to vomit. If he throws up on Kai, will the demon get mad?

He gives yet another small lick, wincing. He never should’ve agreed to work for him. But he didn’t have a choice. And if he had to, he’d choose this again.

With that thought in mind, he gives Kai a larger lick- still small, but not quite  **_as_ ** small.

“Jay, please. You’re killing me here.” The demon gets out.

Jay looks up at the demon, who is flushed red and panting heavily. He stares down at the human, desperation in his eyes.

The young adult gives the base of the cock a small lick, trying to see if that’s any better.

Kai growls. “That’s it.” He sits the rest of the way up and grabs Jay, dragging the human off of the bed. He sets him down gently, sitting in the spot on the bed right in front of where he set him down, putting his cock in Jay’s face once more.

The human ignores the pain that flashes through his body at the movement. He can worry about that later, for now he needs to watch Kai.

The demon grabs Jay by the hair, dragging him closer. He ignores the pained noises that come from the young adult, continuing as though nothing is wrong. He pushes his cock right up against his mouth. “Open up.” He instructs.

Oh. Oh no. This isn’t going to end well. But the human doesn’t have a choice. He has to do what Kai tells him to.

Reluctantly, Jay opens his mouth. Kai’s going to make him-

The demon thrusts himself into the human’s mouth, his cock slamming into the back of his throat. But this doesn’t seem to deter Kai, he just pulls out a little and slams back in. He draws back, and Jay hacks and tries to gasp for air, but the demon is already thrusting back inside.

He tries to pull away, but the tight grip in his hair keeps him in place as the demon fucks his mouth. He can’t get enough air, and Kai ignores the way he weakly paws at his legs.

“You feel amazing.” The demon groans. “Both of your holes, so good. You were made for this, made to be  **_mine_ ** .” 

Jay can barely hear him, so focused on trying to get away. The rough fucking hurts, but his biggest concern is the lack of oxegen, the way his lungs burn. His eyes are watering, and the human feels himself starting to slip.

He tries to speak, to tell the demon about what’s going on, but the cock in his mouth prevents him from communicating. 

The rough pounding continues, that hand yanking on his hair. “What’s that? You want more?” 

The world starts to spin around him, but Jay barely notices it. He needs to get away, he can’t fucking  **_breathe_ ** -

The world around him fades to darkness as he feels himself start to crumple.

Then, he feels nothing at all.

* * *

He wakes up dazed. What’s going on? Where is he?

Blinking, he sluggishly realizes that he’s in bed with Kai, the demon wrapped around him like he’s a teddy bear.

Jay has learned a new thing! He does not like being a demon’s teddy bear!

Something pokes him in the face. “Psst. Jay. You awake?” A voice asks quietly.

Jay glances over to the origin of the noise. He spots what he thinks is Cole, but it’s hard to see with the darkness around them.

“Nope.” Jay replies, closing his eyes again. 

There’s a soft sigh, but before the vampire can speak, Jay’s talking again.

“Whatever you have to say, I don’t wanna hear it.”

“Jay, look, I had to tell him. If I kept a secret like that, Kai would have been pissed.” Cole explains.

“And better me than you, was that your logic?” Jay shoots back, opening his eyes to glare at the vampire.

Cole shrugs. “Pretty much, yeah. I figured he’d be less likely to torture you tha-“

Jay has to fight back a laugh of disbelief. “And you think that  **_this_ ** isn’t torture?”

Cole frowns. “What is that supposed to mean?”

Jay stares at Cole. “How can you not get it?”

“Not get what?” The vampire questions.

Jay sighs. He’s not going to get anywhere with this. “Screw off so I can take a nap.” He grumbles.

Cole glances down. “Look, I just wanted to say that I’m sorry.”

“And you’ve said it, apology  **_not_ ** accepted, now fuck off.” Jay hisses.

Cole looks somewhat annoyed by this statement, but walks into the shadows and vanishes. A few moments later, the door creaks shut.

Jay sighs, looking back up at the ceiling. If he really  **_is_ ** the ‘lone human’, then he is going to answer this call the second the fucking phone rings.

Which isn’t really how it works, but it’s a metaphor, damn it.

So if he’s the ‘lone human’... he just needs to find the Green Ninja. And from the way things are going, Kai is going to bring the Green Ninja to him.

Jay smiles. Even if this isn’t exactly ideal, he has a plan. A horrible plan with virtually no detail, but a plan nonetheless.

Here’s to hoping Kai doesn’t kill him when he wakes up.


	8. Cole Makes Things Worse

Jay wakes up feeling uneasy. Something’s definitely  **_wrong_ ** -

Kai is staring at him with a cold, calculating expression. Like he’s sizing him up for a fight.

All of the human’s instincts are screaming at him to run, to get away, but Jay can’t do that. Kai would most likely get upset, and he can’t afford that right now. He’s lucky the deal is intact as is.

Jay bites his lip, uncomfortable with the stare. He’s not used to being the center of attention, and being stared at by a  **_demon_ ** isn’t exactly a good thing.

His teeth sink into a bite made by Kai, and he winces at the sudden sharp pain as blood starts leaking into his mouth.

“G-good morning?” Jay tries with a weak smile.

Kai’s expression doesn’t change. “It’s one in the afternoon.”

“Oh.” Jay looks away. He’s not feeling up to dealing with Kai right now.

Not that he gets a choice in the matter.

Kai stops staring and releases Jay from his grip. “I hope you know I’m still upset.”

Jay quickly nods. “I- yeah, I know that.” How could he not, after he did...  **_that_ ** ?

The young adult shifts, but winces from the pain. His entire body throbs, but it’s definitely his ass that got it the worst.

Kai gets up from the bed. “I cleaned up.” 

Jay looks around, and lo and behold, he did.

The human suddenly realizes that that includes the inside of him.

Damn it, Kai had touched…  **_there_ ** while he was sleeping?! And Jay didn’t wake up?!

Kai starts putting on clothes- normal clothes, not the gi he’d been wearing the last two days.

Jay gets up from the bed, wincing at the pain the movement causes. The bite marks on his torso throb, the bruises around his hips ache, but that's not what bothers him the most. No, the worst part is the ache  **_inside_ ** of him, reminding him that ‘Hey! You got raped!’.

Kai glances over at Jay and throws an outfit at him.

Jay starts to try to put it on, but then he notices something. “Uh, no shirt?”

“Easier access. You’re lucky I’m letting you wear clothes at all.” Kai tells him.

Jay quickly nods and starts getting dressed, ignoring the pain from his movements. There’s nothing he can say to that.

Kai watches him while he puts on his clothes. Jay doesn’t have it in him to protest, and arguing with Kai would only get him in more trouble.

Once he’s dressed, he waits for Kai to say something. To do something.

He doesn’t. He just continues staring at Jay with interest.

Jay’s unsure of what to do. He doesn’t like being stared at, but explaining that to Kai right now would  **_probably_ ** be a bad idea.

A minute passes, and Kai finally looks away with a sigh. He turns back to the dresser and pulls out a shirt, tossing it at Jay.

“Why-“

“I have things I need to do today that aren’t you.” Kai explains, cutting him off.

Jay goes red, and Kai groans. “Just- just put on the damn shirt.”

So he does. The fabric keeps bumping against that one scabbed over bite, making it itch and sting.

Kai nods. “Good. Now come on. I have things to do. You’ll be hanging out with Cole for now.” The demon turns and walks out of the room.

Jay quickly follows as he pushes down a grimace at the thought of hanging out with the vampire.

Cole’s the one who told Kai. Cole’s the one who made all of this happen. Jay didn’t have a choice in how he acted, but Cole did.

Cole, who doesn’t even seem to realize how horrible Jay’s life has just become as a result of his actions.

“Hey, Cole! Get over here!” Kai calls.

The vampire steps out of the shadows. “Something wrong?”

Jay blinks. Can he teleport via shadow, or was he just standing there, waiting for Kai to call on him?

“I need you to watch Jay. I’m going to be working on finding Lloyd.” Kai doesn’t wait for a response, he just turns and walks away, leaving the two alone.

There’s a beat of silence, the two looking at each other as Kai walks out of sight.

It drags on for a few minutes, with Cole refusing to make eye contact.

Jay can’t handle silences very well. “So, you going to rape me too?” He spits out.

Cole blinks. “Wha- Jay-“

“What? Is that not a fair assumption with how things have gone so far?” The Blue Ninja snaps. He shouldn’t be doing this, he shouldn’t be snarky right now- or at all, to be honest- but the young adult couldn’t care less.

“Jay, look. I said I’m sorry. I didn’t want things to go down like this. But I didn’t have a choice! I couldn’t lie to Kai about something like that, and you know it.” Cole sighs.

“Do I? Worst case scenario, what would’ve happened?” Jay demands.

“I- Jay, this isn’t-“

“Cole, I appreciate your apology. But I don’t want to hear your excuses. This went down in the worst way possible, and the only reason I haven’t killed myself to get out of this situation is because I have to protect my family! So I don’t want to listen to your reasoning. I get that you acted in your own best interests, and that you felt backed into a corner. But I don’t care. This is a living Hell for me, and there’s nothing you can do to make it better.” Jay explains. He turns away from the Black Ninja. “If you’re going to hurt me or whatever for saying this, go ahead and get it over with.”

There’s a pause between them. Jay looks back. Cole looks at a loss for words. He can see the regret in the vampire’s eyes. 

They stand there in the silence, outside of the room that is Jay’s own little torture chamber.

Cole doesn’t apologize again. He seems to get that it won’t change things. 

The tense atmosphere between them makes Jay want to speak out, to say something, to say anything.

He remains silent, crossing his arms. He doesn’t have anything left to say.

Cole is the one to speak. “I’ve got some video games, if you’d like. Zane made a pretty awesome console for them.” His voice is quiet, regretful. If you didn’t know what he did, you might feel bad for him.

Jay softens a little. Cole was just trying to survive in this hell-hole, same as Jay. Here, it’s kill or be killed, every man for himself.

You’re either with Kai or against him. And if you’re against him, may God have mercy on your soul.

Jay looks over to Cole with a sigh. He appreciates the vampire’s attempt, and normally he’d jump at the chance to play video games. But…. “I’m not really in the mood to play any games.” 

Cole nods. “There anything you’d like to do?” He tries.

And Jay, with his lack of a verbal filter, says exactly what’s on his mind. “I want to curl into a ball and cry my eyes out.” 

Cole winces a little. “I-“

“That wasn’t meant as a jibe. That’s all I really feel up to right now.” Jay admits.

Cole gives a small nod. “We’ve got a couch in the game room, and I can grab some ice cream if you want.”

“That’d- That’d be nice. Thank you.” Jay gives a small smile.

So Cole leads the Blue Ninja into the kitchen. Back where this morning started. The vampire starts digging around in the freezer.

“Any particular flavor you like?” He asks Jay.

“I, uh… I like vanilla.”

He gives a nod and continues digging around. After a few moments, he pulls out a pint and hands it to Jay.

“Th-thanks.” The Blue Ninja gets out.

Cole doesn’t acknowledge it, and instead pulls a spoon out of a drawer. “Here, game room’s this way.”

So Jay lets the vampire lead him through the mansion, until they reach the game room- and Jay has to admit, that console looks pretty high-tech.

But he doesn’t make any move to play it. Like he told Cole, he doesn’t really feel up to it. Instead, he goes over and curls up on the couch, ignoring the spike of pain that accompanies sitting down.

The vampire walks over and sits on the far side of the couch- close to Jay, but far enough away that he’s not intruding.

Jay pops open the lid and starts taking small bites of ice cream. He’s trying not to think about what happened, but he can’t drag his mind away from it. No matter what he tries to think about, his thoughts slowly drift back to Kai.

Jay winces. Just thinking about the demon makes him want to vomit. 

Cole seems to notice that something’s wrong. “I know you said that you don’t want to play video games, but would you want to watch me play? I’ve been meaning to play Assassins Creed, but I’ve never gotten around to it.”

The Blue Ninja realizes that Cole is offering a distraction. Something to drag his thoughts away from Kai.

“You’ve never played Assassins Creed? We have to get you started on that now.” Jay gladly jumps at the chance Cole gave him.

So they boot up Assassin’s Creed Origins, and Cole starts the gameplay. Jay gives helpful comments and advice . At first it’s difficult to focus on the game, but as they get further into it, his thoughts drift away from the real world.

Hours pass, and the Blue Ninja gets more into the game- with help from Cole.

Jay points at the screen. “See over on the side of the camp? They’ve got a bunch of caged animals. If you attack the cage it’ll-“

“You guys look like you’re having fun.” Kai’s voice rings out behind them.

Jay freezes in place. His thoughts snap back to earlier at the sound of the demon’s voice.

Cole pauses the game as Kai walks around the couch. Jay pulls his hand back as he feels himself tighten up, getting tenser the closer Kai gets.

“Any luck finding Lloyd?” Cole asks, his voice switching away from the casual one he was using before. Jay didn’t even notice the difference until now.

Kai shakes his head with a sigh. “It’s like he vanished off the face of Ninjago. I don’t understand where he could’ve gone!”

“Dark Island?” Cole offers.

Kai snorts. “Wu’s not that stupid.” He then turns to Jay, glancing him over. “You look really pale. You okay?”

“I’m fi-“ Jay cuts himself off as he remembers Kai’s ban on lies. Well, here goes. “No, I’m not.”

“I’m sorry I snapped at you when we woke up. And for yelling before that.” Kai sounds surprisingly genuine.

Jay doesn’t miss how he avoids mentioning the real problem.

The Blue Ninja doesn’t answer Kai’s attempt at an apology.

“Kai, can I talk to you for a minute?” Cole breaks the silence.

“We’re talking now, aren’t we?” The demon arches an eyebrow.

“Alone.” 

It almost feels like a repeat of earlier that morning, when Zane discovered his secret and attempted to use it to blackmail him.

“And leave Jay unsupervised?” Kai crosses his arms with a glare.

“We won’t go far. Kai, please. It’s important.” Cole pleads.

What are they going to talk about? Well, Jay most likely, but still! What  **_about_ ** Jay?

Kai sighs. “Alright.” He gestures for Cole to follow as he walks out of the room.

Cole gives Jay a small smile. “I’m going to fix this. Don’t worry.”

Then he quickly follows the demon out of the room.

Jay sits there, alone. A few moments pass. He can hear muffled voices from the room next door.

He only waits a few moments before walking over and pressing his ear to the wall.

“I get that you’re punishing him. But-“ Cole gets cut off.

“No, I’m… well, I’m kinda breaking him in.” Kai sounds somewhat sheepish.

Jay isn’t a shoe or a new dog. He’s a person. He doesn’t need to be ‘broken in’.

“Breaking him i- Kai, I’m not sure you understand what you’re doing here.” Cole seems tired, like he’s already figured out how this is going to end and doesn’t like it.

“I’m teaching him. He’s mine, and he’s going to like it, damn it!” The demon grumbles.

No, no he will not like it, thank you very much. He tried to pretend to like it, and then Kai- then he-

“Kai, you ra- you had sex with him  **_without his consent_ ** . That’s not teaching, that’s making him scared of you. You’re going to traumatize him- if you haven’t already.” Cole explains.

“But sex is a good thing. And he enjoyed it, I know he did. How could that make him scared?” Kai sounds honestly confused.

It makes it sting that much more. The demon hasn’t the faintest idea of what he’s done- and even if he did know, would he care?

“It- I don’t know how to explain it, Kai. But you need to get permission- honest, not coerced permission- to do something like that.”

“But he won’t say yes!” Kai complains.

Someone groans. “... I think you’re missing the point here.”

“I don’t think I like whatever point you’re trying to make.” Kai snaps back.

There’s a sigh. “Maybe- just, don’t do it again? Please?” Cole tries.

“Why?” The demon demands.

“Because you’re traumatizing Jay!” Cole sounds exasperated.

There’s a scoff of disbelief. “I’m giving him a good time, how the Hell is-“

A hand is set on Jay’s shoulder, and the young adult flinches away from the wall.

Zane is standing next to him. “Is everything okay?”

“I don’t have anything to say to you.” Jay walks over and sits down on the couch.

“I’m sorry about the way things turned out-“

“Everybody keeps saying ‘sorry’ like that makes everything better! News flash! It doesn’t.” Jay snaps.

Zane winces. “Jay-“

Cole barges back into the room, clearly upset. He storms over to the couch, throwing himself onto it. But despite the display of anger, he seems more scared and sad than anything.

Kai follows, rolling his eyes. “Relax. It’ll be fun!” He assures with a crooked smile. But that dark menace is still there, and Jay glances between the two, wondering what the actual Hell is going on.

Zane frowns. “Is everything o-”

“No.” Cole interrupts. “No, it’s not.”

“You’re not going to disobey a direct order, are you?” The demon prompts. 

Cole looks away. “I- no. Of course not.” He speaks softly, reluctantly. The pain is clear in his voice. He murmurs something, something too quiet for Jay to hear, but Zane nods in agreement with him.

If Kai hears the murmur, he doesn’t respond to it. “Good! I’m sure you’ll see what I mean when the time comes. For now, I’ll let you explain it to him, okay?” And with that, he turns and makes his way out of the room.

Zane sighs. “I’ll go talk to him.” He follows Kai out of the game room, leaving Jay and Cole alone.

The vampire shifts uncomfortably, glancing away. He seems reluctant to talk, but the young adult isn’t going to let him stay silent.

“What happened?” Jay asks, going over and sitting next to Cole. “What did Kai do?”

Cole gives a nervous laugh. “Uh, well, you see…” He trails off, clearing his throat. “He, uh… he said next time, he wants me to watch, maybe even join in. To see what he’s talking about.”

Jay freezes. Kai- it implies that he’s going to do it again, for one thing. For another, it… he doesn’t want anyone to see him like that. And- Jay can’t handle it a second time. He can’t. He just- he just  **_can’t_ ** . Much less with a second person… 

The human bites his lip. There are a million things he wants to say. He wants to yell, he wants to scream, he wants to cry.

He does none of these things, and stares off into space. Cole was trying to help. He heard part of the conversation. Cole was just trying to keep Jay safe, to **_stop_** Kai from doing it again.

Instead he dragged himself into the mess.

“I’m sorry.” The vampire repeats. “I know that ‘sorry’ isn’t enough at this point. But it’s all I can offer.”

Jay feels tears start to prick at his eyes. He fights back a whimper and curls back up into a ball.

It’s only when the tears start to fall that he realizes it.

No matter how nice someone is, no matter how good they seem, everyone here works for Kai. Everyone here is looking out for their own best interest, Jay included.

It’s only when the tears start to fall that it clicks.

Jay is completely alone, and there’s nothing he can do about it.

He’s alone. There’s no knight in shining armor to save-

Wait. There  **_is_ ** a knight in shining armor. 

It’s the Green Ninja.

He just has to hold out until the Green Ninja shows up. According to the prophecy, if Jay is on his side, they’ll win.

He just has to hold out for Lloyd. 

Just has to wait for an angel to save him.

He can last a little longer, can’t he?

He’ll have to. He doesn’t have a choice.

He never has a choice anymore.

  
  



	9. Jay May Have Made A Mistake

The two Ninja sit in silence. It’s making Jay uncomfortable, but he doesn’t know what to say. He doesn’t even know what to  **_think_ ** at this point. He’s upset with Cole, but at the same time he knows that the vampire was just trying to help. This isn’t exactly ideal for him, either.

Jay can’t help but feel annoyed. Cole keeps doing what he thinks is the right thing, and then he makes everything worse in his attempt.

The Blue Ninja wants to rip his hair out. From the moment Kai stepped into Ninjago City, he was screwed over. He just didn’t realize how much until recently. 

And who knows? Maybe it’ll get worse. Based on Jay’s luck so far, it probably will. 

He should enjoy this moment of peace while he can- it won’t last long. God knows when Kai will decide to fuck things up more.

The young adult sighs. There’s not a lot he can do about this situation. Nothing, really. Kai backed him into a corner, and the demon knows it. He knows that Jay’s trapped, and is using it to his advantage. He knows that he can push Jay past his limits and that the Blue Ninja won’t be able to do anything about it. 

Cole shifts uncomfortably. “So, you were saying something about the animals-”

“I don’t really want to play right now.” Jay feels disconnected, like its not really him talking. His tone sounds almost robotic.

“Are- Jay, are you okay?” Cole frowns, looking concerned.

“No.” The Blue Ninja answers truthfully. “No, I’m not.” What’s even the point anymore? Why should he try? He’s not getting anywhere. There’s nothing he can do. This mess is his life now, and he’ll just have to grin and bear it.

“Is there anything I can do to help?” The vampire prompts.

“I think you’ve done enough.” Jay’s voice goes cold. He doesn’t mean to snarl like that, but he doesn’t particularly care that he did. 

Cole grimances. “Jay-”

“Stop. Just… stop.” He’s too tired to deal with this. He’s tired of everything. He’s tired of all the shit that’s been thrown his way. It’s not fair. 

Tears start to roll down his cheeks. It’s not fair. None of this is fair. Who decided that this was okay? Who decided that Jay had to suffer like this?

Kai steps back into the room. “Hey Cole, Zane needs your help searching. Apparently I’m ‘getting in the way’.”

Cole glances at Jay. “Okay…” The vampire seems concerned, but gets up and goes off in the direction Zane went.

Leaving Jay and Kai alone.

The Blue Ninja wipes at his tears as Kai makes his way over. Great, now he’s going to have to deal with Kai trying to be nice. Key word:  **_trying_ ** .

But much to his surprise, the demon doesn’t say anything. He just stands there, watching Jay. It’s almost worse than if he was talking.

Scratch that, it  **_is_ ** worse than him talking. Could Kai just say something and get it over with?

But the demon just stands there, his cold gaze focused on Jay.

The young adult shifts uncomfortably, then winces as it sends a spike of pain through his… lower body.

God, Jay can’t even think about anything related to what Kai’s done. 

“I’d promise to be less rough next time, but I’m not very good at self control.” The demon makes his way over to the couch.

Jay freezes. Nope. Much better when he was being quiet. He didn’t just say- nope. Jay didn’t hear it, and Kai didn’t say it. 

“You’re awfully quiet.” Kai notes, sitting down on the couch- not the spot Cole was in, but the spot  **_right next to Jay_ ** . Invading his personal space.

Oh who is he kidding? Personal space? After everything Kai’s done?

But that just seems to have made it worse. Jay’s breathing picks up and he flinches when Kai leans closer.

“Everything good over there?” The demon asks, his face inches away from Jay’s.

“C- could you back up a little?” The Blue Ninja has to stop himself from whimpering. Seems like he’s been doing that a lot lately.

“Why?” Kai frowns.

“I don’t like it.” Jay explains, hoping that the demon will actually listen for once.

Kai makes a face, but scooches back. “That better?”

“Y- yeah. Thank you.” Did- did Kai just  **_listen_ ** to him? After all of the begging and pleading from before, he listens to a simple request?

The fuck is going on in his head?

The demon perks up. Jay’s not entirely sure what’s got him so happy, but he  **_is_ ** pretty sure that he doesn’t want to know.

There’s silence between them. Well, as long as Kai isn’t talking about  **_that_ ** , some silence isn’t the worst thing in the world.

“Did you have any friends?”

The demon’s question is startling. “Wh- why do you want to know?” Jay stammers.

“Just curious.” Kai shrugs casually. But from what Jay can read of his face, there’s something more here.

“I had my parents, but that’s about it.” It’s probably best to just answer Kai’s questions. The last thing Jay needs is the demon snooping around in his past.

He doesn’t have anything to hide, but still. It’s the principle of the thing.

Kai makes a face. “No one else? You sure?”

“I’m not allowed to lie. Just my parents.” Why does the demon want to know so much? More leverage? He’s already holding the entirety of Ninjago City over his head.

Kai gives a sigh. “Damn.” He mutters it so quietly that Jay barely manages to pick it up.

“Can I know the real reason you want to know?” Jay blurts out.

Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why would he ask that? It’s like he’s  **_trying_ ** to piss off Kai! Bad verbal filter! Bad!

But Kai only gives a small laugh. “I, well, I was trying to see if there was anyone who would know you well and could teach me how to handle your antics. And maybe how to get you not to be so scared of everything.”

Jay wants to scream at that. He’s scared for a reason!  **_Multiple_ ** reasons! One: He’s stuck in close proximity to the demon overlord. Two: He’s basically a slave to said demon overlord. Three: Previously mentioned demon overlord is a fucking assole. The list goes on. But Kai thinks that Jay’s overreacting? Seriously?

Jay’s expression must be reflecting his thoughts, because Kai tilts his head. “Uh… did I do something wrong?”

“I’m scared for a reason.” Jay admits. Kai’s going to find out what he thinks no matter what, and Jay can’t lie anyway, so what’s the point in dancing around it?

“And that is?” The demon prompts, looking at Jay expectantly.

The Blue Ninja sighs. “I’m scared of  **_you_ ** , Kai.”

“Cole said the same thing.” Kai muses, sounding unsure.

“Maybe because it’s true?” Jay’s getting exasperated. This isn’t that difficult to understand!

Kai groans. “I don’t understand humans.”

“Then why did you take one in?” Jay has to stop himself from throwing his hands up in defeat.

“Because you’re cute! And- and you also seem pretty powerful.” Kai tacks on the end almost as an afterthought.

Jay just stares at him. He doesn’t know what to say. He barely knows what to  **_think_ ** at this point. Kai is an idiot. A powerful, dangerous idiot, but an idiot nonetheless.

There’s silence between them, but from the looks of it, it’s bothering Kai more than it is Jay.

Good. Let him suffer.

Seconds pass, and slowly become a minute. After a few more of them, Kai gives in.

“Please say something- it’s creepy when you’re quiet.”

Jay sighs. He’s getting tired of this. “What do you want me to say?”

“I- I don’t know, you can talk about the weather for all I care. Just- I prefer it when you talk.” Kai sounds somewhat sheepish as he reaches the end of his sentence.

Funnily enough, Jay doesn’t care how Kai feels right now. “I haven’t seen the outside since about midday yesterday. I have no idea what the weather is like.”

“... I was using that as an example.” The demon groans.

Jay goes back to silence. If it really bothers Kai that much, he’s going to keep doing it. Non-aggressive way he can get back at the demon without incurring his wrath!

Another minute passes.

“Can we just get this over with?” Jay sighs.

“Get- get what over with?” Kai frowns.

“Everything. Whatever you’re going to do to me, just do it. ” Jay spreads his arms wide. “Get it over with.”

Kai stares at him for a moment. “Jay, I don’t want to do anything to you.”

The human puts his arms down. “Uh-huh. Sure. Look, just get it over with.”

“Bluejay, listen. Our first time wasn’t as…  **_romantic_ ** as it could have been. But I still care about you. I don’t want-“

“Bluejay?” Jay interrupts, narrowing his eyes.

Kai sighs. “You’re the Blue Ninja and your name is Jay, but that’s not what I’m trying to-“

“You’re  **_nicknaming_ ** me?” After everything Kai’s done, he’s going to try and treat him like a close friend?

“Yeah? Is that an issue?” The demon arches an eyebrow.

“No, no, I just wasn’t aware we were close enough for nicknames.” Jay looks away with a glare.

Kai puts a hand on the young adult’s shoulder, and doesn’t seem to notice how it makes the human flinch. “Jay, listen. I just want us to be happy together. I know I fucked up and made some mistakes, but-”

“You don’t even know what you did wrong.” Jay whips around to face Kai, taking the demon’s hand off of him. “I heard what you were talking to Cole about. You have no idea-”

“Then tell me, damn it! You guys keep saying I shouldn’t have done that, but you don’t tell me why!” Kai throws his hands up. “It’s not like I’m bad in bed or anything!”

Jay stares in disbelief. “I said no and you did it anyway! I didn’t want it! You had no right to- to- to do… **_that_** to me! I said no!” The Blue Ninja ignores the tears that prick at his eyes. “It- it’s a personal thing that shouldn’t be done without permission! You had no right to touch me like that, to- to **_use me_** like that!”  
  


“I- I didn’t  **_use you_ ** , I-“

“Then what did you do, huh? ‘Cause that sure felt like being used to me!” Jay snaps.

“You  **_enjoyed_ ** it!” Kai protests angrily. “I know you did!”

“I didn’t want to!” Jay yells. How difficult is it to beat into his stupid head?

“Why does that matter?!” Kai sounds exasperated.

And that’s the crux of the matter. The piece that Kai just can't seem to understand.

And Jay’s done trying to explain it to him.

“You know what? Fine. We can pretend you’re right.”

Kai groans. “That’s not what I-“

“You aren’t listening to what I’m saying. So we can just say you’re right and move on. You just don’t get it. Fine. Whatever. My parents are safe. Do whatever you want to me.” Jay holds his arms out again, an invitation. He belongs to Kai. The demon may pretend, but he doesn’t really care about Jay. He cares about what he can get from Jay.

Kai sighs and rubs a hand over his face. “Fine. I will. Forget I said anything. You want me to not give a shit? Fine. But like it or not, you’re  **_mine_ ** . And nothing can change that.”

Jay puts his arms down, giving a sad smile. “I know. Trust me, I know.”

The two of them sit in silence. Jay doesn’t have anything left to say. For once in his life, he’s willingly quiet. He’s  **_enjoying_ ** the silence. 

Cole walks back into the room. “Apparently I’m also being distracting. I’m starting to think that Zan just doesn’t like company.” He glances between Kai and Jay, and its clear that he’s trying to figure out what happened between the two of them while he was gone.

… and there goes that silence.

“Before you have a stroke trying to figure out what’s going on, let me just tell you. Jay hates me and won’t listen to what I’m saying.” Kai explains.

Oh, he did  **_not_ ** just say that. Is that really what he thinks just happened here? Jay shakes his head in disbelief. “ **_I’m_ ** the one not listening?!”

“Yeah, you are! At least I was  **_trying_ ** to understand what you were saying!” Kai shoots back. “You kept interrupting me and wouldn’t listen to what I was trying to a word that came out of my mouth!”

“Because you were being stupid!” Jay argues.   
  
“I was telling you how much I care about you, how the fuck is that-”

Cole clears his throat. “Right. Got it. Should I leave?”

Before Kai can answer, Jay darts to his feet and hides behind Cole. “He’s the one babysitting me now. You can go do something else.”

Kai stares at him. “I- Are you kidding me? Jay-”

“Go do something else.” The young adult insists. “The two of us are fine.”

Cole steps out of the way. “Please don’t drag me into this.”

“... as if you aren’t already part of it.” Jay scoffs.

The demon opens his mouth to say something, but before a word can leave his mouth, Zane comes running into the room. “I found Lloyd.”

All three of them look to the Nindroid. “How?” Cole asks. “We’ve been searching for hours!”

“Have you ever heard of Destiny’s Bounty?” The Nindroid questions.

“Yeah, it’s an old pirate ship.” Jay interjects. “No one’s ever found it.”

“No one until now. Lloyd is currently taking refuge there- it’s not far from the monastery. We may be able to catch him by surprise.” 

Kai nods. “Send me the coordinates. I need to go get my uniform. Cole, wait for me on the roof- we’ll be taking our dragons.”

“You guys have dragons?!” Jay demands. 

“So do you, you just need to-“

“Cole, now is not the time.” Kai interrupts. “Go wait on the roof. Zane, watch Jay for me.” And with that, the Red Ninja runs off.

Cole nods and runs off, presumably to the roof.

Zane gestures for Jay to follow before walking back the way he came.

“I have a dragon?” Jay looks up at the Nindroid as he follows him down the halls.

“We all do, yes.” Zane confirms. “But now is not the time for that.”

“When is it  **_not_ ** time for dragons?” Jay demands. He has a dragon! How the Hell does he have a dragon?

“Right now.” Zane shoots back, opening the door to his workroom.

Jay takes in all of the Nindroid’s tech once more. Something tells him that it’ll never cease to amaze him. “Touché.”

Zane goes over to his computer and puts on an earpiece. “Northeast 2.7 miles.”

Jay glances around the room. Zane asked him to help him keep the Green Ninja alive via blackmail, and he no longer has said blackmail. But now Jay wants- no,  **_needs_ ** \- to keep Lloyd alive.

This is awkward.

The two stand in silence as Zane gives directions to the supernatural beings. From what Jay’s hearing, it took them about fifteen minutes to get there.

Finally, Zane gets up. “Follow.” He walks out of the room.

Jay does as he’s told. They walk in a direction that Jay recognizes from the last time they almost caught the Green Ninja.

They walk into the dungeon, and Zane goes over to the cuffs in the exact same cell as before, scanning them over.

Déjà vu, anyone?

Just then, Kai and Cole appear on the opposite end of the room, each holding the arm of an unconscious young teenage boy, who they drag across the floor of the dungeon.

And then Jay realizes the teenager has white, feathery wings.

“Are we positive that Lloyd’s the Green Ninja?” Zane asks, helping the two chain the boy to the wall in the cell.

Kai shakes his head. “If we were, we’d have killed him. We’re holding him here until we can confirm if he is or isn’t.”

Once Lloyd is situated, the three Ninja leave the cell, and Zane types something into an electronic pad next to it.

The cell door makes a clicking noise- likely meaning the door is locked. 

The angel looks up at the noise, a dazed expression on his face. “Sensei? What’s going on?”

Kai turns to face him. “Wu’s not here, Lloyd.”

Lloyd strains his arms, but they’re in chains. He attempts to move his wings, but they’re also restrained. Finally, his gaze settles on Kai. “You.”

Kai smiles. “Me.” He agrees.

“Why’d you come after me?” The angel asks, glaring at the Red Ninja. He continues to try to free his arms for a moment, before finally stopping, letting them go limp in their chains.

“You’re the Green Ninja.” Kai counters with a smirk.

“Who told you that?” Lloyd asks, narrowing his eyes. He hasn’t quite admitted to it yet, but he hasn’t denied it, either.

“Not important, Green Ninja.” Kai inspects his nails.

Cole and Zane watch this encounter, clearly intrigued. Jay… Jay doesn’t know what to think.

“My name is Lloyd.” The teen glares.

“You’re the Green Ninja.” Kai repeats with a smile. This is it. This is what will make or break him.

“That doesn’t mean I don’t have a name.” Lloyd replies.

Kai lights up. “No, but you did just confirm that you were.” He gestures at Zane, and the Nindroid leaves the room.

“So what?” Lloyd shoots back.

“So, I can kill you.” Kai explains cheerfully, clapping his hands together.

“What, you weren’t going to do that before?” The teen counters.

“Maybe I was, maybe I wasn’t. But-“

“Why’s there a human here?” Lloyd interjects, staring at Jay.

Kai turns to the Blue Ninja. “Go on. Explain.”

Jay suddenly finds interest in his feet. “Do I have to?”

“Yeah. Go on, tell the Green Ninja why one of the people he’s trying to save sided with the demon overlord.” Kai smirks.

Lloyd stares at Jay. “You’re human! How could you turn your back on everyone like that?! Why the Hell would-“

“This isn’t exactly ideal for me, either! I came here because it was the only way to protect my family! I didn’t have a choice! I didn’t want this! I live out every minute wondering if it’s going to be the one that I’m killed! But my family is safe as long as I work for Kai, so I’m doing it, whether it’s the right thing to do or not!” Jay yells back.

Lloyd continues to stare at him. “You- you made a deal with him, didn’t you?”

“It was the only way to keep my parents safe.” Jay is feeling less sure of himself the more he talks. After all,  **_he’s_ ** the one who pointed out that the Green Ninja was probably an angel. If he hadn’t done that, maybe Lloyd could have escaped for longer, had time to grow stronger and be able to face Kai. 

Zane re-enters the room, holding a katana. He walks over and hands it to Kai.

The demon walks over and unlocks the cell. Lloyd starts struggling in his chains.

Jay’s mind is screaming at him to do something. The Green Ninja is about to lose! He’s about to die! There’s got to be something he can do!

“Wait!” The word tumbles out of his mouth. He has no plan, no idea what he’s going to say. But he has to say  **_something_ ** .

Kai stops. “What is it?”

“Maybe you shouldn’t kill him.” Okay, good start, he just has no reasoning to give Kai to actually not do it.

Zane looks surprised, and Cole stares in confusion. Jay ignores both of them, focusing his gaze on Kai.

The demon scoffs. “Why shouldn’t I?”

An idea pops into Jay’s head. He shouldn’t say it. He really shouldn’t. But it’s that or let Lloyd die.

“There are things worse than death.”

Kai starts to lower his sword, and everyone in the room has a confused- and for Lloyd, somewhat betrayed- expression.

The demon frowns. “And what do you have in mind?”

The words taste ashen in his mouth, but he says them anyway.

“Cut off his wings.”


	10. Ex-Angel

Jay could’ve heard a pin drop in the silence that followed his request.

It’s broken by Lloyd’s quiet murmur. “What?”

And then Kai starts laughing. It echoes through the dungeon as the demon clutches his stomach and bends over, wheezing.

Cole makes a move to go over to the Red Ninja, but Kai holds up a hand, signaling that he’s okay as his laughter dies down. 

“Sadistic! I like it.” The demon grins, picking up the katana. He turns to Lloyd, and Jay winces at the angel’s horrified expression. “Poor little wingless  **_ex-angel_ ** .”

Lloyd starts struggling again, desperately trying to free himself as he murmurs a quiet mantra of, “This can’t be happening, this can’t be happening, this can’t be-“

Kai turns back to Jay, still grinning. “Where the Hell did that idea come from? I didn’t think you’d even consider something like that.”

Jay panics. “I- uh, I don’t know. Not- not for any bad reason! I just- uh- heat of the moment thought?” What- What did Kai mean, ‘ex-angel’? Does removing an angel’s wings make them not be an angel anymore?

Kai shakes his head with a smile. “Didn’t know you had a sadistic streak.”

It’s then that Lloyd starts to cry. Quiet sobs that send tears drizzling down his face. 

The room turns to look at him. Jay remembers that this is just a kid. He didn’t ask to be the Green Ninja. He’s just a kid who got stuck with the role.

He’s not entirely sure what the significance of an angel losing their wings is- other than it  **_might_ ** mean turning them mortal- but it seems to be a pretty big deal. And he just volunteered the savior of Ninjago.

Jay winces. Maybe this wasn’t the best idea. Lloyd seemed fine when facing death, but the mere  **_idea_ ** of losing his wings made him cry.

In summary, Jay screwed up. He screwed up  **_bad_ ** .

“Please.” Lloyd whispers. “Please don’t. Don’t take my wings.”

Kai shakes his head, still grinning. He steps back out of the cell. “Zane, how about you build Lloyd here some Vengestone cuffs?”

Zane nods and walks out of the room. He mouths something to Jay as he leaves, but the Blue Ninja can’t quite make out what it is.

Cole tears his eyes away from Lloyd to look at Jay. The young adult can’t quite read his expression, but he doesn’t look happy.

The vampire shakes his head and steps into the shadows, vanishing.

Lloyd continues to cry from his spot on the floor. “Kai, please, don’t do this. There’s still good in you, I know it! I’ve heard stories of your angel days-“

“Shut up, Green Ninja.” Kai’s smile is gone, replaced by a dark scowl. He closes the cell door and types something into the panel, locking it once more.

“Kai, there’s still good in you! You can still be saved! Kai, please, I’m begging you, don’t do this!” Lloyd’s tears drip down over his clothes.

Kai turns around and starts walking toward the exit. “Jay, c’mon. We’re leaving.”

The Blue Ninja quickly follows Kai, but before they leave the room, he turns and mouths a silent apology to Lloyd.

There’s nothing else he can do. He’s already screwed the angel over.

Is this what Cole felt like after telling Kai? It sucks making a decision and then screwing things up.

In summary, Jay now has guilt and he does not like it.

But he remains silent as he follows Kai out of the dungeon. 

And then what Lloyd was saying finally registers. ‘Angel days’. At one point, Kai was an angel. 

Something must have gone wrong. But what? What possibly could have-

Wait.

Kai doesn’t have wings.

Does- Does cutting off an angel’s wings make them a demon?

Jay may have made a bigger mistake than he thought. 

And because he has no verbal filter, he voices his concern out loud. “What happens when you cut off an angel’s wings?”

Kai pauses mid stride and turns to Jay. “You don’t know?”

Jay stops walking to stay in place with Kai. “I, uh… no.”

The demon sighs. “So that’s why you were okay with suggesting it.”

“What does it do?” Jay presses. He needs to know. He needs to know if he just condemned Lloyd into becoming a demon.

“It severs their connection to heaven.” Kai glances away from Jay. “It takes away their halo.”

“I have no idea what that means.” Jay tilts his head.

“The ex-angel is left with two options. Adapt or die. If they adapt, one of two things can happen.” The demon seems uncomfortable. 

Jay rolls his hand in a gesture to continue. “And they are…?”

“I’m getting to that. They either turn mortal, or they-“ Kai’s voice trembles a little. “Or they become a demon.”

And Jay, the idiot that he is, continues onward with his questions. “Lloyd mentioned ‘angel days’. Were you-“

“Don’t.” Kai interrupts, his voice quiet.

“But-“

“Jay, don’t.” The demon sounds… tired. Emotionally exhausted.

So Jay stops talking, and when Kai continues on his way, he follows.

What else is he supposed to do?

There’s silence between them once again as they walk.

It only lasts about a minute. “Where are we going?”

“Away from Lloyd.”

Jay waits for Kai to say something more, but the demon doesn’t elaborate.

“... anywhere in particular, or just away?” The young adult prompts. What can he say? He doesn’t like not knowing things.

The demon sighs. “Jay.” His voice carries a warning.

Jay proceeds to ignore said warning. “Yeah?”

Kai sighs- again. “Switch the subject.”

“Okay. How old is Lloyd?” The young adult knows he’s starting to get on Kai’s nerves, but he doesn’t particularly care.

“Something not related to Lloyd.” The demon amends, sounding annoyed.

“Is it possible to revert a demon back to an angel?”

“Oh, for the love of the First Spinjitzu Master, stop-”

“Who’s that?” Jay interrupts. Speaking of which, what’s spinjitzu?

The demon stops walking. He then takes a slow deep breath, and closes his eyes.“Jay.”

“Yeah?” The human stops beside Kai, feigning innocence as he flashes his best charming smile.

“Shut the f-” Kai glances over at Jay and pauses. “Nothing. Just, I know you know what topics to avoid. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t ask about things like that.”

… what just happened?

The demon starts walking again, and Jay quickly follows, but he’s deep in thought.

Kai was about to tell him to shut up, Jay knows he was. So why didn’t he? What changed in those few moments? All that happened was that he looked at Jay, so-

… wait.

Jay was smiling. Not in a passive aggressive way, but genuinely smiling. Well, it wasn’t really genuine, and Kai knows this, but maybe Jay has more power over the demon than he thought. Earlier, Kai was trying to express that he cared about Jay. He wanted to be in a relationship with him.

Kai, the demon overlord, has a crush.

Jay is going to abuse the fuck out of this.

“You seem happy.” Kai notes.

Jay’s jolted from his thoughts by Kai’s statement.

“You know, I think I am.” Jay smiles. And for once, it’s not a lie. For the first time in this hell-hole, he’s not scared. For now, he’s happy. Well and truly  **_happy_ ** .

It’s a nice feeling.

Kai smiles back. His smile is dark, as always, but it’s not menacing. “That’s good to hear.” And he… he sounds  **_genuine_ ** . Like he’s actually happy about Jay being happy.

It almost makes Jay feel bad about what he’s happy about.

Key word:  **_almost_ ** .

The two of them walk in silence. Jay recognizes where they are only a few moments before they step back into the game room. Cole is sitting on the couch, munching on a bag of chips.

The vampire doesn’t acknowledge them, continuing to eat his chips without comment.

Kai makes his way over to the couch and sits next to Cole. Jay follows the demon and sits next to him, ignoring the twinge of pain from doing so.

There’s a beat of silence.

Jay doesn’t like silence very much.

“What’s it like being immortal?”

“It’s like being mortal, except you can’t die and your powers are enhanced.” Cole explains around his chips.

“Being immortal enhances your powers?” That’s not good. If Lloyd turns into a demon, he’ll likely become evil. If he turns mortal, he won’t be strong enough to face Kai.

“Wisdom isn’t the only thing that comes with age. As you grow older, your powers become more… well,  **_powerful_ ** .” Cole pops another chip in his mouth.

“Is it just age, or being immortal in itself?” Jay asks. If its age, there’s nothing he could have done. If it’s being immortal… well, best not to think about that.

“That’s a good question.” Cole frowns. “Hey Kai-”

“Don’t know, don’t care.” The demon gets up and grabs a remote, switching on the TV.

On screen, a news reporter is sitting at a desk with a concerned expression. “-and despite appearing in Ninjago City multiple times, he has yet to kill or harm anyone, although one person has allegedly been kidnapped by-”

Kai sits back down and switches the channel. 

“-with the demon still at large, and the Green Ninja nowhere to be found-”

The Red Ninja groans and changes the channel again.

“-in this time of darkness, we can only pray for-”

Kai turns off the TV. “Can’t people talk about anything else? I already know what I’m doing, I don’t need updates on it.”

Jay and Cole exchange a glance, but don’t say anything. There’s not a lot to be said.

The young adult bites his lip, but winces as his teeth sink into a scab. Kai really did a number on him.

“So, uh… what are you going to do after you kill Lloyd?” Jay asks, his voice shaking. If the demon no longer has to worry about the savior of Ninjago, god knows what he’ll do.

“I don’t think I’m going to kill him. Just cut off his wings and throw him in the dungeon. Hell, maybe I’ll let him go so he can see the faces of the people he let down.” Kai smirks.

“You sound sure that he won’t become a demon.” Jay notes.

Kai waves him off. “He’s the Green Ninja, there’s no way he’ll turn.”

… this is going to take a cliche twist and make him become a demon, isn’t it?

Jay’s read comic books. He knows how these things work. 

Wait, but now that he knows it’s going to do that, is it  **_not_ ** going to do it just to spite him? And besides, this isn’t a comic book. Jay isn’t Fritz Donnegan or anything.

It’d be a lot cooler if he was, though. A lot less stressful, too. 

_ ‘Fear? Fear isn’t a word where I come from!’ _

But Jay spends most of his time in fear. Sure, he has a way to manipulate Kai now, but that doesn’t mean he can rest easy. Being cautious- and by extension, afraid- is a good way to keep him alive.

“I know a channel we can watch.” Jay smiles. A while back, he found a station that literally only shows things based off of the Starfarer series. AKA, Fritz Donnegan’s comic series.

Kai passes him the remote. “I doubt there’s anything on nowadays that isn’t the news.”

Jay quickly turns on the TV and switches to the station. “Ha! You’d be surprised.” It’s easy to fall back into being casual, but in the back of his mind he knows exactly how cautious he needs to be.

The young adult pushes the thoughts from his mind, putting his attention back to the TV.

A man is sitting in a chair, smiling at the camera as he talks. “-another comic from the series is coming to the big screen! And here with us we have-”

“Cliff Gordon!” Jay exclaims as the man comes on screen. 

“Now, Mr. Gordon, how are you feeling about filming this next installment?” The interviewer asks.

The actor smiles. “Pretty good, actually. I’ve always loved to play Fritz as a character, and this movie is just another chance to put myself in his shoes.”

“Are you at all nervous about the recent sightings of Kai near the filming site?” The interviewer presses.

Cliff shakes his head with a smile. “Fear? Fear isn’t a word where I come from!” He quotes.

Kai glances over at Jay. “What’s this?”

“That’s Cliff Gordon, he plays Fritz Donnegan in the comic series Starfarer. It’s really meant for kids and teenagers, but it’s actually really cool.” Jay explains. “I can explain the plot and all of the subplots in the series!” He adds proudly. 

Kai reaches for the remote. “I don’t want to hear a monologue about a fictional character, thanks.”

Jay holds the remote away from him, almost hitting Cole in the face with it. “Fine, I won’t, just lemme watch this.”

“Uh, hey!?” Cole complains.

Kai does an over-dramatic sigh. “ **_Fine_ ** .”

Jay turns his attention back to the TV.

“Fine, just ignore me then.” Cole grumbles.

“Mr. Gordon, what do you say to the alleged rumors of the Green Ninja showing up in a future comic?”

Jay turns off the TV before the demon can say anything. Why would they put him in a comic? Are they  **_trying_ ** to piss off Kai?

Speaking of Kai, the demon heaves a sigh and shakes his head. “Like I said, everything’s related to the news.”

“I didn’t think it’d be in Starfarer.” Jay grumbles. Even his comic books have to remind him of his situation. Isn’t fiction supposed to be a way to  **_escape_ ** reality?

Cole gets up with his bag of chips. “I’m going to go see what Zane’s doing.”

Kai nods. “Just don’t bother him too much. I want to get everything set up sooner rather than later.

Cole gives Kai a thumbs up as he leaves the room in the direction of Zane’s lab.

Leaving Jay and Kai alone.

Again.

Jay shifts uncomfortably, ignoring the pain from doing so. It seems to be lessening, anyways. He looks at the ceiling, at the wall, literally  **_anywhere_ ** other than Kai.

Suprise suprise, Kai doesn’t seem to like being ignored very much. He openly stares at Jay with a blank expression.

Jay sighs and turns to Kai. “What is it?”

“I’m bored.” The demon explains. He continues to stare at Jay with prolonged eye contact.

Jay looks away. “So why are you staring at me?”

“You’re entertaining.” Kai explains. “And like I said, I’m bored.”

Jay’s…  **_entertaining_ ** ? What the Hell does  **_that_ ** mean?

“I didn’t mean that in a bad way.” Kai is quick to amend his previous comment. “I just meant that you’re interesting.”

“Interesting.” Jay repeats.

Kai groans. “You know what I mean.” 

To be completely honest, Jay has no idea what the Hell Kai is talking about. All he knows is that he thinks Jay is ‘entertaining’ and ‘interesting’. Neither of which sound like good things.

The two of them sit in silence- again. Kai continues staring at Jay, and the Blue Ninja has to resist the urge to start yelling at him to go do something else.

He doesn’t want to die, but at the same time, yelling at Kai would be  **_really_ ** satisfying. 

He decides not to scream at him. Kai’s calm for the time being, and it’s probably best to try to keep things that way.

Minutes pass. The two remain silent. Jay’s urge to yell at Kai intensifies. 

Finally, right before Jay is about to  **_snap_ ** , Zane enters the room. “I have completed the handcuffs.”

Kai nods. “Have Cole put them on Lloyd and take him to the roof. I want you to get a camera- we’ll be doing this live.”

Jay’s eyes widen. He’s going to have Ninjago watch as their savior is defeated? He knew Kai was an asshole- hard not to realize that, after everything he’s done- but he’s going to take Lloyd’s wings in front of Ninjago?

Zane gives a short nod and leaves the room. Kai gets to his feet, doing a quick stretch. “I got you a Blue Ninja uniform.”

Jay frowns. “...when did you have time to do that?”

“That’s not important. What’s important is that you’re going to be wearing it.” Kai starts to walk away in the direction of his room.

Jay quickly follows. “Wait, I’m not going to be on screen, right?”

Kai glances over at him. “Course you are. You’re the one cutting off Lloyd’s wings.”


	11. That Moment You Realize Lloyd Is Gen Z

Jay freezes. “I- I’m sorry,  **_what_ ** ?” He can’t have just heard what he thinks he’s heard. There’s no way that Kai would-

“You, Jay Walker, are cutting off the Green Ninja’s wings.” Kai repeats. “That so hard to understand?” He continues walking, but Jay remains frozen in place.

He’s going to  **_WHAT_ ** ?

Kai notices that Jay stopped and turns around. “Bluejay, c’mon. Let’s get moving.”

Jay stays in his spot, frozen. He looks up at Kai. “You- you can’t be serious. Th- there’s no way. I’m not- I’m not going to cut off Lloyd’s wings!”

Kai crosses his arms. “You’re going to disobey a direct order?” He narrows his eyes. “You remember what happens if you don’t do what you’re told, don’t you?”

Tears start pricking at his eyes. He’s caught. No matter what he does, he’s fucking up. No matter what he does, people are going to die. There’s no good solution here. Kai backed him into a corner, just like he did in the exercise room.

The tears start to roll down his face, and Jay is suddenly struck by something. He has a plan for how to manipulate Kai!

Jay does his best puppy-dog eyes. In the most pitiful tone he can muster, he begs, “Kai, please don’t make me do this.  **_Please_ ** .”

Kai looks taken aback. He blinks several times. “I-” He cuts himself off. “Bluejay, I-” He cuts himself off again. He just kinda stares at Jay for a moment.

Then his gaze hardens. “That’s a dirty trick, you know.”

Fuck.

“What are you talking ab-“

“Don’t lie to me.” Kai cuts him off. “I gave you an order not to lie.”

Jay shuts up. He just made this situation a heck of a lot  **_worse_ ** . 

“Follow.” Kai demands, starting to walk again.

Jay does as he’s told, almost in a trance. What has he done? In his desperate attempt to fix the situation, he only achieved what he was trying to avoid: pissing off Kai.

The Blue Ninja wipes at his tears as he follows Kai to his room, ignoring the growing feeling of dread.

Time to try to fix things. “Kai-”

“Save it.” The demon interrupts, pushing the door to his room open. He makes his way over to the closet, and digs around in it for a moment. He pulls out a uniform similar to his own, and tosses it to the young adult.

Jay catches the uniform and looks it over. The bright blue- his favorite color- seems to mock him, reminding him that all of this was his choice. He was the one who suggested the deal.

Maybe blue isn’t as good a color as he thought it was. 

“Get changed.” Kai orders.

Jay doesn’t bother asking the demon to turn around. He just turns around himself and starts taking off his shirt. 

After he’s changed, he pulls the hood up over his head. Maybe this way he can hide his shame of being a part of this.

“Mask off, you’re not putting it on until after the camera’s seen your face.” Kai glares.

Jay’s eyes widen. “But-”

“I don’t like being manipulated. Take the damn mask off.” Kai growls, stomping over and flipping it back himself. Then without a moment's pause, he grabs Jay by the arm and starts walking out of the room and back down the hall. 

Jay walks alongside him. He’s not in a hurry to get dragged around on the floor again.

The two Ninja make their way to the roof, where Cole, Zane, and a frustrated looking Lloyd are waiting.

Zane holds a remote, and Cole has Lloyd pinned to the ground with his foot. The vampire glances up when the two enter. 

Kai gives a nod to Zane. “Everybody take off your masks. We’ll put them on in a minute.”

Cole, the only one who had his hood on, flips it back.

Jay shifts nervously. This is it. This is where he has to make a choice. Ninjago City or the Green Ninja. His parents or Lloyd. 

Jay’s never been very good at making decisions.

“Zane, camera.” Kai intructs. “Let’s get this started.”

Zane switches on the camera, and Jay does his best to hide behind Kai so that he’s not visible.

Kai smiles. “Citizens of Ninjago! I have a little message for you guys. Were any of you aware that the Green Ninja is an angel?”

There’s a pause, Kai most likely letting them freak out.

“I only discovered that recently myself, when I captured him.” He walks over to Lloyd. When he does so, Jay is exposed to the camera. He can practically **_hear_** the gasps that must follow when people from Ninjago City recognize his face.

“Oh, yeah, we also got a new member. Everyone say hello to Jay Walker!” Kai smirks. “He made a deal with me. But that’s not the focus of this message.”

The demon waits a beat before gesturing to Lloyd, who is still pinned under Cole’s foot. “The point is, I captured the Green Ninja, and he’s an angel. You know what that means?”

He waits for another moment before he continues. Then he smiles. The menacing grin matches the insane look in his eyes. “I’m gonna cut off his wings. Or more accurately, Jay here is.” The Red Ninja pulls his mask on, and the other’s follow suit. Jay scrambles to do the same.

This is it. This is the moment.

Zane picks Kai’s katana off the ground and tosses it to the demon, who catches it with ease. He turns to Jay. “Here you are.” He presses the hilt of the blade into the Blue Ninja’s hands.

Jay takes a deep breath. Oh god. He’s going to cut off Lloyd’s wings. He’s going to kill Ninjago’s hope for a savoir. 

Feeling almost numb, he walks over to Lloyd, who begins struggling. “Jay, listen-”

“Shut up, Green Ninja.” Kai orders. “Jay, get this over with.”

Jay’s hands tremble, making the blade shake. He’s going to do it. He’s going to cut off Lloyd’s wings. He’s going to-

Lloyd suddenly twists, using a quick movement to knock Cole off of him. He snatches the blade from Jay’s hands and slices at the handcuffs.

Jay watches in awe.

But the handcuffs don’t break.

This doesn’t seem to deter Lloyd, who readies the sword as he turns to face Kai, dropping into a fighting crouch. 

There’s a tense pause. Cole gets to his feet. Jay backs out of Lloyd’s range. The silence is like a weight over them as it suffocates the life from the roof.

And then Kai laughs. But not like he did in the dungeon. No, this brief, maniacal laugh seems to exist only to prove his insanity.

Then he stops just as suddenly as he started. He stares at Lloyd with cold, dark eyes. “And what exactly do you think you’re doing?”

“Saving Ninjago.” Lloyd replies without missing a beat.

Kai snorts. “You’re wearing Vengestone chains, Lloyd.”

“So?”

“So, you can’t use your powers.” The demon crosses his arms, shaking his head.

Zane makes his way to one side of Lloyd, and Cole goes behind him. If you count Jay, they’ve got a person guarding every direction.

“Ninja never quit!” The Green Ninja proclaims.

“That goes both ways, you know.” Kai comments, fire starting to flicker over his suit. But the material doesn’t burn. It glows and smolders, but doesn’t light on fire.

Lloyd glances around. “I’m not losing my wings.”

“I don’t think you get a say in that. It’s four to one.” Kai smirks, taking a step closer to the blond.

Jay doesn’t like how he’s included in the number against Lloyd, even though he knows that he’s on Kai’s side. He still doesn’t like counting himself against the Green Ninja.

“I like those odds.” Lloyd grips the katana tighter. A line of sweat crawls down his face.

“All four of us have elemental powers, three of us have trained with our powers for centuries, two of us are immortals, and one is a fucking demon.” Kai gives a false small. “The odds aren’t in your favor, kid. You should be afraid right now- not being scared in a situation like this is foolish.”

“Fear? Fear isn’t a word where I come from!” Lloyd quotes.

Jay gasps. He doesn’t mean to do it out loud. But he does, and all heads turn to him. Naturally, Jay has to explain. “Fritz Donnegan quote.”

Kai groans. “Please don’t go on that monologue about him right now, we’re kinda busy.” He gestures at Lloyd.

“I wasn’t going to monologue.” Jay grumbles under his breath. Judging by Kai’s disbelieving glance, the demon heard him anyway.

“Uh-huh. Sure you weren’t.” The demon rolls his eyes.

The five Ninja stand there, each one waiting for one of the others to make a move. The tense air from before returns, along with the suffocating silence.

A minute passes.

“If you don’t attack within fifteen minutes I’m legally allowed to leave.” Lloyd proclaims.

Jay fights back a laugh. Thankfully, Kai doesn’t seem to notice, although Cole gives him a strange look.

“I don’t follow the law.” The demon points out.

“That’s not what I-”

“You think cops could stop me?” Kai presses. “I’m the Red Ninja. The demon overlord. The police can’t hold a candle to me.”

Lloyd groans. “I’m trying to be funny. Make the best of a bad situation.”

Kai grins. “So you admit you’re in a bad situation!”

The Green Ninja shakes his head. “Let’s just get this over with.” He takes a deep breath, closing his eyes. Then he spins the blade around and attempts to cut off his handcuffs.

Kai groans. “That’s Vengestone, you idiot. It’s not gonna-”

The katana cuts through the cuffs this time, and Lloyd smirks at a dumbfounded Kai. “You were saying?”

The demon glances at Zane, who looks equally baffled. Cole shakes his head, scoffing. “There’s no way.” The vampire murmurs.

The Green Ninja drops back into his crouch, holding the katana in a perfect fighting stance. “Okay boomers, lets get this bread.”

Okay, first of all, considering that the other three Ninja have been alive for centuries, they’re  **_way_ ** too old to be Baby Boomers.

But Jay can’t help it this time. He starts laughing. He receives a confused glance from Cole and a glare from Kai, but he can’t help it.

“Jay, stop it.” The demon demands, clenching his fists.

The young adult continues laughing. “Okay boomer.”

Cole gives Jay yet another strange look, and Zane just sighs.

Wait. Zane is literally made of technology. He understands memes. Jay can make references at him and he’ll understand.

Lloyd grins. “See, someone gets it!”

“ **_ENOUGH_ ** !” Kai yells.

Jay immediately stops laughing. It’s all fun and games until the demon gets pissed off.

“You know, Jay had convinced me to keep you alive. I was just going to cut off your wings. And I’m not entirely sure what you’re saying, but I’m pretty sure you’re insulting me.” He shoots a glare at Jay. “And you made him do it too.”

Jay opens his mouth to say something, but before he can, Kai shakes his head. “I’ll deal with you later.”

Then he turns back to Lloyd. “I’m going to burn you alive.”

“Lit.” Lloyd replies. Then, without a moment’s hesitation, he charges Kai. He does a quick swing of the katana.

Kai catches the blade midair, his flames melting the metal. He then proceeds to attempt to kick Lloyd in the gut, but only hits air as the Green Ninja drops the blade and jumps back. 

Cole is right behind him when he moves, and manages to get a swift punch to his shoulder, which gives a sickening  **_crack_ ** .

Lloyd winces, but spins around and aims a punch for Cole’s face. But before his fist makes it halfway there, he’s thrown to the side by an icy blast, and hits his head on the ground when he lands at Jay’s feet.

Jay knows he’s supposed to attack. He knows he should be helping Kai. But, well, Kai never directly ordered him to help… 

Lloyd scrambles to his feet, and Jay steps back as a fiery blast hits where the Green Ninja was laying a moment before.

When the blond darts out of the way, he runs directly into Cole’s punch, which sends him right back down to the floor.

Before he can get back up, ice covers the ground where he lays, trapping his arms and legs against the roof.

Lloyd closes his eyes and starts to glow. Jay backs up even more. He’s not really sure what’s going on, but it seems  **_dangerous_ ** . Hell, everyone here is dangerous.

The light explodes outwards, shattering the ice. The other four Ninja are sent backwards by the force, and Lloyd takes the opportunity to run to the edge of the rooftop. 

But before he can make it any further, Kai darts over next to him and hits him in the chest with a flaming punch, lighting the teen’s clothes on fire.

Lloyd immediately drops to the floor and does a roll, coming up with a few minor burns, but no fire. Unfortunately, when he gets up he’s right in front of Zane, who suddenly starts spinning.

“Ninja…  **_GO_ ** !” The Nindroid yells. In a matter of moments, he’s encased in a mini ice tornado.

Wait a minute, what? Mini ice tornado? What the Hell is that?

Zane runs his mini tornado into Lloyd, who is thrown backward into Cole. The vampire quickly puts the teen in a headlock, forcing the blond in place.

Kai takes the opportunity to punch Lloyd in the gut with enough force to send both him and Cole skidding back a little.

“Uh, hey?!” Cole protests. “I got him. No need to indirectly punch me.”

Lloyd closes his eyes and starts glowing again.

Cole closes his own eyes. “Can’t be blinded if you blind yourself!”

Jay just kind of stands there, watching this. Kai’s probably going to yell at him for not doing anything when the fight is done, but he doesn’t want to help defeat the Green Ninja. No way. He wants no part in this. Well, he already has a part in this. 

Anyway.

The flash of light sends them all skidding back again, and is enough to break Cole’s hold on the teen. Said teen runs back over to the edge of the rooftop, only to have his feet encased in ice again by Zane.

Lloyd closes his eyes and starts to glow again- but before he can emit the burst of energy, Kai throws a fireball at him, breaking his concentration.

The Green Ninja struggles to break free from the ice as the flames start to cover him. He begins to scream, the flames charring and mutilating his skin as they travel.

The blond falls to his knees as he screams, desperately trying to pat out the fire.

Its then that Jay comes up with an idea. Lloyd’s been heading for the edge of the rooftop the whole time, maybe he can escape if he gets off of it!

Jay runs over to Lloyd, ignoring Kai’s shout of “Wait!”, and pushes the teen off of the roof.

The rushing wind puts out the fire, but Lloyd continues to fall, and fall, and fall-

But seconds before he hits the ground, the light from before surrounds him, and he comes zooming back upward on a golden dragon. From the distance he’s at, it’s easy to see that he’s covered in burns ranging from first to third degree. Almost like he has common sense, he doesn’t return to the rooftop. With a quick salute, he flies off and away.

Cole moves to jump off of the rooftop himself, but Kai grabs him by the arm. “Let him go. We have other things to deal with.”

The demon turns to face Jay.

Uh-oh. Maybe he should’ve thought this through a little more… 

Kai grabs Jay by his gi, pulling him close. “The fuck was that?”

“I didn’t know he could summon a dragon!” Jay protests. And he’s not lying. Maybe he can get through this conversation without explaining that he was trying to help Lloyd. Maybe he can just tell Kai a bunch of half-truths.

The demon narrows his eyes as he flips off his hood. “You don’t choose to help until we’re winning, and then when we do your ‘help’ allows him to escape. Yeah, sure, I’m gonna believe that you weren't trying to help  **_him_ ** rather than  **_us_ ** .”

Jay gives a nervous laugh. “Uh… my mistake?”

“You’re not allowed to lie, Jay.” Kai growls, taking off the young adult’s mask.

“I’m not lying!” Jay protests. Just because he’s not telling the whole truth doesn’t mean that he’s lying!

“Were you trying to help the Green Ninja escape, yes or no?” The demon demands.

Jay glances away. “Uh…..”

“Answer me!” Kai growls.

“I- I was trying to help him escape.” Jay admits with a wince. “But to be fair, you never told me I wasn’t allowed to do that.”

Kai’s glare is  **_scalding_ ** . “I didn’t tell you that you weren't allowed to help the one person who’s able to kill me escape. Huh. Maybe that’s because I was assuming you weren't going to betray me like that.”

Jay gives a nervous laugh. “Uh… sorry?”

Cole clears his throat. “I hate to interrupt, but the camera’s still rolling. Are we turning it off, or-”

Kai sends a wave of fire at the camera, setting it ablaze. It falls over, its tripod smoldering as the device begins to melt under the extreme heat.

“... or you could light it on fire. That works too.” Cole glances away.

Jay can feel the heat from the flames even though he’s on the other side of the rooftop. Just how much of that was practical and how much was Kai threatening him?

Speaking of Kai threatening him, the demon turns back to Jay, his glare seeming to peice through his very soul.

Jay is an adult, he has elemental powers, and he most definitely, definitely does  **_not_ ** whimper. He doesn’t. He may be scared, okay, but he’s not  **_that_ ** scared.

Kai walks over to the door and drags Jay down the stairs and back to the game room. Jay winces and bites his lip to stop from crying out from the pain of being dragged on stairs.

Kai doesn’t stop at the game room. He keeps walking, Jay being pulled along behind him.

For a minute, the young adult thinks they’re going to Kai’s room, and starts struggling. But the demon turns and heads in another direction.

Jay stops his escape attempts. Well, as long as Kai doesn’t do …  **_that_ ** again, then it’ll be okay. Jay can handle it.

It’s only when they head down another set of stairs that he realizes where they’re going.

Okay, maybe Jay  **_can’t_ ** handle it.

Kai drags him down the stairs to the dungeon. Jay winces at the movement. Being dragged down stairs hurts like Hell, but Kai seems to be fond of doing it.

“Ow.” Jay grumbles half-heartedly.

The demon ignores him, and drags him into a cell- thankfully not the cell that Lloyd was in. He doesn’t chain the young adult to the wall, either- that’s one good thing, at least. Kai leaves the cell and locks the door behind him.

“You aren’t allowed to leave here until I say otherwise, got it?” The demon glares.

Jay quickly nods. “Yep. Stuck in the dungeon for the foreseeable future. Got it.” While this may not be ideal, it could always be worse. Best not to test Kai.

The Red Ninja nods and leaves the dungeons, heading back up the stairs. 

Leaving Jay alone in his cell. But honestly, this place doesn’t seem too bad. It’s heated, like the rest of the mansion. There’s still lights. He has a bed, a toilet and a sink. And most importantly of all, he’s not stuck sitting around with Kai, waiting for the demon to try something.

Yeah, things could definitely be worse. If anything, his situation just  **_improved_ ** , due to the lack of Kai. 

… It’s actually kind of sad that being in a dungeon made his situation better, but Jay’s not complaining. Things are looking up. Lloyd is free, Jay’s safe from Kai, and the public knows who the Green Ninja is.

Life is good.

  
  



	12. Kai’s Being... Nice?

Okay, maybe things aren’t as good as he thought they were. There’s one thing Jay didn’t account for when he sized up his situation.

Boredom.

Jay glances at the clock. He’s been here for a little over an hour, and he’s already bored as Hell. He’d try disassembling the toilet, but he’s not sure he’d be able to put it back together correctly. 

He gets up off of his spot on the bed and walks over to the wall, banging his head against it. “Ughhhhhh. Just how long is he gonna keep me here?”

Cole steps out of the shadows and walks over to Jay’s cell. “A few weeks, I think. You should stop hitting the wall, Kai won’t be happy if you get a concussion.”

Jay sighs and goes back over to the bed, laying down. “And how long have you been down here?”

“A few minutes.” Cole admits, sitting down outside the cell. Looks like he plans to be down here a while.

“Were you just going to stand there and watch me?” Jay questions.

“Pretty much, yeah.” The vampire sighs. He looks almost as bored as Jay feels.

The young adult frowns. “...why?”

“I’m not allowed to answer that.” Cole answers.

Jay sighs. He’s figured out what’s going on. “Did Kai send you?”

“He told me to say ‘no’ to that question.” While Cole didn’t expressly say it, it’s obvious what he’s actually trying to get across.

“Kai sent you.” Jay confirms with a sigh, sitting up.

“No he didn’t.” Cole gives him a half-hearted glare.

“Sure. Hypothetically, if Kai were to send you, what do you think his reasoning might be?” Jay questions, leaning back against the wall. Maybe he can get some answers out of him.

“Hypothetically? He’d probably be worried about you.” Cole flicks one of the cell door bars, and it makes a loud ringing noise.

“And why would this hypothetical Kai be worried?” After all he’s done? Worried about Jay? It’s almost laughable.

“Probably concerned that he’s been too rough lately and that he might have hurt you.” Cole flicks the bar again.

“He’s worried that he might have hurt me.” Kai’s worried about hurting him. Really. He does realize he’s dragged Jay across stairs three times now.

“Hypothetically.” Cole adds.

“Right. Hypothetically.” Jay echoes. Its then that he realizes that he barely notices the pain of sitting down now. He’s not sure if it’s faded or if he just got used to it.

The two sit in silence for a little while, but soon enough, Jay growls bored. He attempts to summon lightning in his hand, solely to mess around with.

It doesn’t work.

Jay frowns and tries again.

Once again, nothing happens.

The young adult looks to Cole. “Uh, another hypothetical thing. If my powers weren't working, how would Kai react?”

Cole rolls his eyes. “Cell’s made of vengestone. Powers don’t work when you or a part of you is surrounded by it.”

Jay frowns. “So I still have my powers?”

“Yeah, you just can’t access them right now.” Cole confirms.

The young adult groans. “D’you think Kai’d be okay with me having a book? Or some random electronic to disassemble? I’m bored.”

“Electronic to disassemble?” Cole glares, his voice taking on a darker tone.

Well, Jay’s not sure how to respond to his tone, so he might as well just answer the words. Or try to, at least. “Nothing of Zane’s, obviously, I doubt I could figure out how that stuff works. It’d be fun to try, but Zane doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy who’d be okay with someone messing with his tech.”

Cole relaxes again. “I don’t know, Zane’s actually pretty chill.” He smirks toward the end of the sentence, and Jay suddenly remembers the icy blasts the White Ninja had been doing.

Jay groans at the pun, although he inwardly smiles at it. “Chill? Really?”

“Aw, you struck me as the kind of guy who’d like a good pun.” Cole complains.

“A good pun, not a bad one.” Jay protests.

“Is there really such a thing as a ‘good pun’?” Cole laughs, getting to his feet.

“That’s fair.” Jay smiles.

“I’ll see about getting you something to do- but I can’t promise anything.” The vampire says as he goes over to the stairs.

Jay nods with a small smile. “Thanks.”

Cole doesn’t respond, he just makes his way up the stairs, leaving Jay to his own devices.

And as Jay’s already established, he doesn’t do so well being left alone. Well, he’s fine being left alone, he’s just not so good being left with nothing to do.

He sighs, drumming his fingers against his leg. A few weeks? He’s barely going to be able to make it through the day.

A few minutes pass, and Jay stares at the wall, debating punching it. On one hand, it would hurt. A lot. But on the other, at least he’d have something to focus on.

A few more minutes crawl by. Jay’s urge to punch the wall intensifies.

Right as he’s about to get up, footsteps echo through the dungeon as they head down the stairs. Jay glances over, curious as to who it is. Not Cole, he wouldn’t know if Cole was coming down the stairs. So that leaves Kai and Zane.

The White Ninja steps down the stairs and into view. He makes his way over to Jay’s cell. Wordlessly, he tosses Jay a phone.

Jay fumbles a little bit, but manages to catch it. “Huh?”

“You wanted something to take apart. There’s not a lot you can do with a phone- nobody would even consider coming close to here. But you can disassemble it or play games.” Zane explains.

Jay smiles, but it quickly fades as a thought hits him. “You got permission from Kai, right? He’s not going to be mad that I have this?”

“It was Kai’s idea.” Zane glances back to the stairs.

“Huh.” Jay mutters, looking the phone over. It looks pretty old. Judging by the level of technology, it’s from about five or so years ago, but in an older style. “Where’d you get this?”

Zane smiles. “That model is an old prototype of one of the first phones I built. It’s from around ten years ago.”

Jay looks up, surprised. “You built this? And you’re letting me mess with it?”

“I’m curious about your intellect. Maybe in the future you can help me with my inventions.”

Jay lights up. “Seriously? Working with you to invent things sounds  **_awesome_ ** .” 

“You will have to wait until after Kai has decided to free you.” Zane points out.

Jay gives a sigh. “Yeah, I know. Cole said it might be a few weeks.” He glances at the phone. “Do I get a charger for this, or do I need to make it last the whole time?”

“It has a charge of a fortnight, if you are still here by then I’ll talk to Kai about getting you a charger.” Zane tells him.

Jay blinks. “It has a charge of how long?” 

The Nindroid sighs. “Two weeks.”

“Okay, because I thought you were talking about the game-”

“Stop.” Zane demands.

“-and I was so confused-”

“I said stop.” Zane repeats with a glare.

“Okay, okay, I’ll stop. Jeez.” Jay puts his hands up in surrender.

Zane sighs. “I’ll be back later with food.” He turns around and makes his way over to the stairs, starting to make his way up them.

“Do I still get nice food?” Jay calls after him. 

The Nindroid doesn’t answer, he just keeps walking up the stairs, out of sight.

“Zane I still get nice food right?” Jay repeats, louder this time.

Zane once again doesn’t answer. By now, he’s probably almost out of earshot.

“Zane!” Jay yells.

But there’s no answer.

Jay huffs, taking the phone and going over to the bed. Zane said that no one would dare come near, not that he disabled communications. Maybe he can do a live stream and talk to people.

He turns on the phone and opens social media, starting the live stream. He titles it, ‘The Blue Ninja’, and then just… waits.

It doesn’t take very long for people to start joining. One person types, _ ‘Dude, the Hell are you on a live stream???’ _

Jay laughs. “Uh to the guy who asked why I’m doing this, well, Kai put me in his dungeon and I’m not good at being bored. I like to talk a lot.”

There’s a flurry of messages, but one stands out, from a guy called ‘Royal-Blacksmith-Reject’.  _ ‘Jay r u seriously live streaming yourself in a cell? Zane left 30 seconds ago how r u bored?’ _

Jay blinks. “Is that Cole or Kai typing that? 

_ ‘Do u really think Kai would b on a live stream?? I mean I can go get him if u want’ _

Jay quickly shakes his head. “Nope, nope, good without Kai at the moment, thanks. Do I want to know why you’re watching this?”

_ ‘Kai threw a remote at the tv and broke it’ _

Jay sighs. “Of course he did.”

_ ‘But don’t mind me, go ahead and talk to other people’ _

“Oh gee, yeah, I can be calm and do chit-chat while Kai’s second in command is watching me.” Jay snarks. “Sounds totally good.”

_ ‘Fine b that way Bluejay’ _

Jay glares at the camera. “Don’t call me that.”

_ ‘Kai calls u it’ _

“Yeah, because I’m too scared to make him stop.” Jay shoots back. “How’d you even know that, anyway? You weren’t anywhere near when he-  **_HAVE YOU BEEN SPYING ON ME_ ** ?!”

_ ‘no’ _

“Oh my god you have!” 

_ ‘I said no’ _

“Lies!”

The next response just shows him that ‘Royal-Blacksmith-Reject’ has left the live stream.

Jay sighs. “Right, maybe this was a bad idea.” He glances at the messages. Most of them are freaking out, yelling at him, some people are tagging others, it’s just a mess of messages. He scans them, looking for anything interesting.

_ ‘Yo does anyone know the demons @’ _

“Don’t you dare tag Kai.” Jay glares. “I don’t know if he even has social media and I don’t want to find out.”

_ ‘why’d u make a deal w/ demon? bad move’ _

Jay sighs. “I made a deal with Kai in order to protect Ninjago City. If you live there, he can’t hurt you. I did it to protect my family, and you can’t convince me that I shouldn’t have done it.” He continues scanning the messages.

_ ‘What’s Kai like’ _

“Uh, describing Kai, let’s see... I’ve got a couple of choice words that explain him pretty well, but I’m not going to say anything because he might hear and he’s mad enough already.” Jay explains.

_ ‘Was that really the green ninja?’ _

Jay sighs. “Uh, well, yeah, it was really him. He got away though, so it’s all good.” He forces a smile. “We’ve still got a fighting chance.”

_ ‘r u on kai’s side???’ _

The young adult, while noticing the message, doesn’t answer. 

_ ‘jay im sorry i left like that i panicked ill come back for u i promise’ _

Jay blinks. Once. Twice. “Lloyd, is that you? Don’t- don’t worry about coming back for me, I’m fine. Kai wouldn’t hurt me, I don’t think. I’m just going to be hanging out downstairs for a little while. You don’t need to come back.” He looks at the name of the guy who sent it.

‘not-my-dad-thx’

Huh. That’s a weird username. 

Well, its not any weirder than ‘Royal-Blacksmith-Reject’.

_ ‘wdym kai wouldnt hurt u’ _

“Uh. Let’s not talk about that.” Jay looks away from the camera for a minute. When he glances back, he realizes he’s flushing red.

Fuck.

_ ‘jay what did u do’ _

“I didn’t do anything! Kai just has…  **_issues_ ** , let’s say.” Jay gives a nervous laugh. “It’s fine, really. I’m fine, we’re fine, it’s all fine.” 

_ ‘omw’  _

“Lloyd- Lloyd no. Don’t come back here. Kai’ll kill you! It’s not worth it. Really, everything’s fine.” Jay looks away. “I’m not worth sacrificing the fate of Ninjago for. Come- come back when you’re stronger.”

_ ‘r u sure i can b there in 30’ _

“Yeah, I’m sure. Don’t come back, it’s-” He cuts himself off as he reads the next message.

_ ‘dont look now but coles behind you’ _

Jay freezes. “Uh. How long?”

_ ‘idk only saw him just now’ _

Jay slowly turns around, coming face-to-face with Cole. “Uh. Hi?”

“You’re still trying to help the Green Ninja, even after all of this.” The vampire glares.

Jay doesn’t even try to deny it. “...can I convince you not to tell Kai?” He winces. Flashback, anyone?

Cole continues glaring for a moment. But the malice in his eyes quickly fades. “Damn it Jay, why do you keep doing this? As long as you follow the rules, you and all of Ninjago City stays safe. Why do you keep jeopardizing your deal?”

“You know why.” Jay glares, setting the phone down and turning off the live stream. “You know exactly why I keep doing this. I don’t have very many options anymore, and I can’t just live the rest of my life being something for Kai to play with, to mess around with. I’m not- Cole, I can’t live like this.”

Cole glances to the side. “Jay, I know this isn’t ideal. And I know I made things worse. But Kai knows he screwed up now, so maybe-”

“ **_No_ ** .” Jay growls. “No way in Hell.”

The vampire sighs. “I figured you’d say that.”

There’s a pause. Jay’s thoughts run wild, each one painting a worse and worse image of what’s to come.

“Are- are you going to tell Kai?” Jay whispers. God, he can’t imagine what Kai would do now. He’s already upset at Jay, and he knows one thing that Jay  **_really_ ** doesn’t like… 

“Jay…” Cole trails off with a wince.

“Cole please. Please don’t tell him. We both know he might try it again.  **_Please_ ** , I’m begging you, don’t do this. I- Cole, I’ll do anything.  **_Anything_ ** . Please, just don’t tell him.” The Blue Ninja begs. 

The vampire looks away, avoiding eye contact. “You know I can’t. I have to tell him. He’s not as lenient with me as he is with you.”

“Kai has a habit of backing people into corners.” He agrees. “But-“

“Jay.” Cole cuts him off. His gaze is sad, regretful. 

“Please.” Jay begs, hoping that maybe, maybe Cole will change his mind.

The vampire turns away. “I’m sorry.”

Then he starts making his way to the stairs. Jay remains silent, unsure of what to do. He’s going to- he’s angered Kai on two separate occasions in the past two hours, and this will be the third. Just what the Red Ninja will do is a mystery, but Jay has a sinking feeling he knows what it is.

Cole leaves his sight, and Jay goes over and sits on the bed, burying his face into his hands. This doesn’t even feel real. How is this happening to him? It was only yesterday that he was living back on the junkyard with his parents, blissfully unaware of what would happen in the near future.

It hasn’t even been twenty-four hours, but it feels like it’s been weeks. Each moment takes an eternity to pass inside this miserable hellhole.

Jay picks up his head as the tears start to fall. This is his life now. He’s Kai’s slave, not so much a person as he is an object. His thoughts and feelings mean nothing to the demon. Why should they? As far as Kai’s concerned, Jay is just another human. The demon’s already killed millions just like him.

The young adult sighs, wiping at the tears. He’s lucky to even be alive after everything he’s done that Kai didn’t like. 

So why does he feel like he’d rather Kai had killed him? This life is a living nightmare, one that Jay can’t hope to escape. He’s nothing but a slave to Kai.

Nothing but the Blue Ninja.

That’s all he is now. He’s not even really a person. He’s one of the Ninja, that’s it. He’s just-

Footsteps make their way down the stairs, each step light and quick. It’s in a matter of moments that Kai stands there, still dressed in his gi.

To Jay’s surprise, he doesn’t look angry. He looks concerned. 

The demon slows down to a walk as he makes his way over to Jay’s cell. “Hey there, Bluejay. You feeling okay?”

Kai’s… not yelling at him? Not dragging him across the floor? Not flipping out? What the Hell is going on?

“I’m fi-” Jay cuts himself off at Kai’s disapproving expression.

“No lying.” The demon reminds.

Jay sighs, looking away. “How much did Cole tell you?”

“Everything.” Kai admits. “And I want to say that I’m sorry.”

Jay blinks. Did- did Kai just  **_apologize_ ** in response to Jay helping his arch-nemesis?

“I keep using negative reinforcement. But humans are too smart for that. Positive reinforcement works better. Or at least, that’s what Zane tells me. So I want to try this again with a clean slate. That sound fair to you?” Kai smiles.

And what is Jay supposed to say? It’s not like he can disagree with Kai. So instead of speaking, he just nods. Good enough, right?

Thankfully, Kai seems to agree. The demon walks over and unlocks the cell. “So, Cole tells me you like video games.”

Why the Hell is Kai being nice to him. What is going on. This is a mess and Jay should be  **_flipping his shit_ ** _ - _

But he just smiles. “Uh, yeah. You play?”

No, no, no! This is not okay! A clean slate for Jay, yeah, but after everything Kai’s done, the human can’t just forgive him. Not after- after-

Not after  **_that_ ** .

Oblivious to Jay’s internal dilemma, the demon takes him by the hand and starts to lead him back up the stairs. “Not really, but how hard can it be?”

If it was anyone else who had said that, Jay might’ve laughed at them. But with Kai? It’s all the young adult can do to force a smile and shake his head.

This is going to be a long rest of his lif-

Wait a minute, Cole said that he’s stuck with them and death can’t get him out of it and he’s  **_permanently_ ** a Ninja-

Nope, not thinking about that. Just- just no. Jay has enough problems without worrying over what’ll happen in the distant future. 

He’s got enough problems, period.

Jay’s about to say something, when there’s a ringing noise. Kai takes a phone out of his pocket, holding it up to his ear.

“Hey, you’ve reached the hottest Ninja alive, what do you need?” Kai greets.

There’s a muffled answer as the two Ninja reach the top of the stairs. Kai grins his dark grin, the one with menace.

Uh-oh…

“Yeah, so about the Green Ninja thing, you in or you out?” The demon asks. 

There’s another muffled reply. 

Kai visibly brightens. “Great! See you in a few?”

There’s a grumbled noise on the other end of the line, and then Kai hits the ‘end call’ button. 

The demon keeps walking, and Jay makes sure to keep up. “Who was that?”

“An old friend.” Kai explains. “A ghost named Morro.”

  
  



	13. Hugs

Kai leads the Blue Ninja to the entrance of the mansion, right in the entryway where Jay first showed up.

There’s a short period of silence as the two stand there. It feels almost suffocating to the young adult, and he quickly decides to speak up.

“So, who’s this Morro guy?” Jay prompts. “You said he was a ghost, but why’s he helping you take down the Green Ninja?”

“Well, because the Green Ninja is supposedly powerful enough to stand a chance at beating  **_me_ ** , he’s pretty strong, right?” Kai stares at the entryway, clearly waiting for the ghost.

“Right.” Jay agrees. But what does that have to do with it?

“Morro’s always wanted to become more powerful. And ghosts have this cool ability where they can possess people…” Kai trails off.

Before Jay can fully process that, something green and translucent goes  **_through_ ** the door. Doesn’t open it, just goes right through it. 

The ghost nods at Kai. “I’d say it’s nice to see you again, but we both know this is purely business.”

Kai sighs. “Yeah, yeah, all work and no play, gotcha.”

The ghost turns his gaze to Jay, making the young adult shiver. “So this is the Blue Ninja I’ve been hearing so much about.”

“His name is Jay.” Kai points out.

Jay gives a small nervous wave, fighting back the urge to hide behind Kai. Better the devil you know, right? “You must be Morro. Hi.”

Morro ignores him, looking back to the demon. “He’s human.” 

Kai glares. “That a problem?” He asks, crossing his arms.

“Humans are  **_weak_ ** .” Morro snarls, his face twisting into a scowl as he glances back over at Jay.

Kai narrows his eyes.“He has elemental powers.” He shoots back.

“Does he now?” Morro’s look shifts to intrigued, which makes the human somewhat uneasy. “I didn’t think that was possible. Could I test-”

“No.” Kai cuts him off with a sharp glare. “He’s not just any human. He’s a member of the team.” 

Uh. Test what? His powers, obviously, but how? Why does Kai seem so protective? 

“He betrayed you.” The ghost points out with a glare of his own in Jay’s direction.

“I know.” The demon seems completely done with the conversation. “I’ve dealt with it.”

Morro sighs. “Fine. Just- fine. We both have the same goal here, correct? We both want to get the Green Ninja.”

Kai nods. “Once we do, he’s all yours.”

“And how do you plan to get ahold of him?”

“Bait, obviously. I’m going to kidnap a civilian and torture them until he shows up. Wu in particular, if I can get my hands on him.” Kai explains.

“I know where we can find Wu.” Morro smirks. “He’s got a tea shop.  _ ‘Steeper Wisdom’ _ , I believe? The name isn’t important, I know where to find it.”

Kai stares. “I’ve been looking for this guy for the past three years, and he’s been running  **_a tea shop_ ** ?!”

Morro continues smirking. “To be fair, he opened it pretty recently.”

Jay looks between the two of them. He’s not entirely sure who this ‘Wu’ guy is, but he does remember Kai mentioning him back at the monastery before they burned it down. 

Kai groans. “I feel so  **_stupid_ ** . Of course he opened a tea shop. Why wouldn’t he? I bet he did it for the sole purpose of rubbing it in my face.”

Morro laughs. “Let’s go get this old bastard. We bringing anyone with us?”

Kai frowns, clearly deep in thought. “We’ll take Zane. Cole can watch Jay.” He decides.

“If he’s a member of your team, why is he being babysat?” Morro questions.

“Mind your own business.” Kai shoots back.

Morro nods. “Very well.”

Kai puts a hand to his ear. “Zane, we’re going on a trip. Snag Cole and have him watch Jay for me, we’ll meet up in the entry hall.”

There’s a muffled response, and Kai takes his hand away from his ear. “They’ll be down in a few minutes.”

Morro nods. “We should discuss plans. How are we going to let Lloyd know we have Wu, and what will we do when he shows up?”

“Well, I figured we’d torture him for an hour or so before turning on the TV. That should get the kid’s attention. When he shows up, my team can distract him long enough for you to take control. That sound good?” Kai offers.

The ghost nods. “Why do we have to torture him beforehand? Just showing Lloyd we have him should get his attention.”

“I’ve got a bit of resentment.” Kai admits. “But don’t we all?”

Morro smirks. “I’m not exactly fond of him either. Sure, he can take a few hits before we go live.” He agrees.

Okay, so whoever this ‘Wu’ guy is, they don’t like him very much. From what Jay’s managed to gather, Wu’s an old man who likes tea and is a friend of Lloyd.

That’s all he’s got.

Zane steps into the room, Cole following close behind. “Morro.” The Nindroid greets.

Morro gives a simple nod in response. 

“Let’s get moving. Cole, keep an eye on Jay for me.” Kai doesn’t wait for a response, he just throws open the doors over-dramatically and makes his way out of the mansion. 

Morro follows with a sigh, and Zane is close behind him. After a moment, all three have left, and the double doors slam shut, leaving Cole and Jay alone.

There’s a beat of silence.

As he has proven countless times, Jay’s not very good with silence.

“So, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.” Well, he hasn’t really, it’s just something that suddenly clicked during his time in the cell.

Cole starts walking back down the entrance hall, toward the main rooms. “You have my attention.”

“Remember when you came into Kai’s room? Right after the- y’know.” Jay prompts nervously, following the vampire.

Cole nods. “Yeah, why?”

“You didn’t seem to understand that what Kai did was wrong. But later, when I talked to you, you seemed to get it. What’s with that?” Jay questions, fully prepared for Cole to ignore him or start yelling.

To his relief, he does neither. “Well, you seemed really upset, so I figured there was something I wasn’t getting. I did some research, read some survivors’ stories, and tried to figure out why it bothered you so much. I think I’ve figured it out now.” Cole explains.

Jay blinks. Cole actually did research to figure out what was wrong? That’s… really thoughtful of him. 

“Too bad Kai isn’t more like you.” Jay jokes. Well, he says it with humor, but it’s not really a joke, as the pain in the back of his voice proves.

Cole mutters something that Jay can’t quite make out, but quickly flashes a smile. “Ha, yeah. I’m not too bad, if I do say so myself.”

The two make their way back through the maze of rooms, and over back to the game room, where Jay can now see that the TV has a remote embedded into it.

Jay stares at it for a moment. Kai really just threw a remote into the TV. “Someone has anger management problems.” He mutters.

Cole smiles. “He really does. I’d say we should get him therapy, but I don’t think it would help very much.”

“I think  **_I_ ** need therapy after all of this.” Jay complains. “I’ve never been so stressed out.”

Cole sighs. “You and me both.”

Jay blinks. Why would  **_Cole_ ** need therapy? The young adult wracks his brain, trying to think of anything that happened to the vampire. Well, Kai kept getting upset at him, but that’s hardly a reason for therapy. Well, it wouldn’t be for Jay anyway. What could have happened that made Cole so upset and uncomfortable that he would need professional help after this?

… Jay did something, didn’t he. Something that put the vampire on edge, something that bothered him to the point that he feels the need to seek help.

The Blue Ninja thought he knew how many mistakes he’s made, but he didn’t realize that he had made some that had affected Cole. 

“Something wrong?” The immortal prompts. “You look worried.”

Jay forces a smile. “Uh, nope. Nothing’s wrong, everything is perfectly fine, I’m not worried at all about the fact that I made you need therapy-”

“Wait. You think it’s your fault?” Cole interrupts with a confused expression.

“Uh… yeah?” Jay gives a nervous smile.

The vampire’s confusion melts into humor, and he laughs as he shakes his head. “It’s not you. Trust me on that one. You haven’t done anything wrong.”

The young adult frowns. “Then why-”

“Who do you think?” Cole’s humor starts to fade a little, his expression shifting over to annoyed. But it doesn’t seem to be directed at Jay.

“Uh, me? We covered this?” 

The vampire sighs and shakes his head. “It’s Kai. He’s being…  **_difficult_ ** .” 

Jay opens his mouth to say  _ ‘When is he not?’ _ , but suddenly a small disk on the coffee table projects a 2-D hologram, showing an image of…

Of a purple pulsing thing with red eyes?

Cole makes a face, but steps in front of the hologram.

“Where is Kai?” The thing on the other side hisses in a dark, rough voice.

Cole forces a clearly fake smile. “He’s working with Morro to take Wu hostage. We think we’ll be able to lure the Green Ninja in and let Morro possess him.”

“He hasn’t been giving his reports.” The thing growls.

“He found a human with elemental powers and was distracted by him. The human is here, if you’d like to talk to him.” Cole offers, ignoring Jay’s rapid head shake as the young adult backs away.

“A human with elemental powers?” The thing muses. “Such a thing has not occured in eons. Yes, I would like to speak with him.”

Cole gestures for Jay to come over, and reluctantly, the human complies. Once into view, he gives a small wave toward the purple red eyed blob. “Uh, hi. My- my name is Jay. It’s nice to meet you, Mister ...?” He trails off, waiting for an answer.

“I am the Overlord, the ruler of Hell. You are the human with elemental powers.” The thing proclaims.

“I- yeah, that’s me. Master of Lightning.” He gives his best winning smile. It probably looks nervous, but when is Jay not nervous nowadays?

“Master of Lightning? A powerful element. Tell me, human, why did you choose to side with us over your own race?” The Overlord questions.

“Well, it wasn’t really a choice. I’m doing this in exchange for Kai leaving my family alive.” The Blue Ninja explains.

The Overlord doesn’t seem too happy with his answer. “I see. Black Ninja, get me into contact with Kai. I have a way to better...  **_control_ ** this human.”

Oh, that doesn’t sound good. 

Cole’s eyes widen, and Jay can see realization dawning in them. But the realization of what? “Uh, Jay doesn’t need any Dark Matter in his system. He’s good as is.”

“The ‘good’ is the problem.” The Overlord hisses.

“That’s not what I meant. He really  **_doesn’t_ ** need any Dark Matter, honest.” Cole gives a nervous smile.

What does  **_he_ ** have to be nervous about?

“Get me into contact with Kai.” The Overlord repeats in his low tone.

Cole sighs. “Yes my lord.” He quickly smacks the disk on the table, making the hologram disappear. “I hate him. I hate him so much.”

“Kai’s not the ruler of Hell?” Jay questions.

“He’s the second most powerful demon. The Overlord is the most powerful. You know the thing about only one demon being  **_able_ ** to go through the portal?” Cole doesn’t wait for a response. “Yeah, it’s garbage. The portal’s still open, the invasion hasn’t even started yet.”

Jay blinks. “I’m sorry, what?”

“Kai was just sent here to kick things off, destroy any and all resistance. Once we heard about the prophecy, we decided to stay until the Green Ninja was defeated. Then, and only then, will the Stone Army show up.” The vampire explains.

“Um. So what you’re saying is-”

“Everyone in Ninjago is going to be hit by Dark Matter. Kai and I will try to keep you safe from it, but I’m not sure if we’ll be able to.” Cole looks away with a wince.

“You can’t hurt anyone in Ninjago City!” Jay protests. They made a deal, damn it! And while Jay isn’t sure what this ‘Dark Matter’ is, it sounds like a weapon, and therefore no one in Ninjago City should be able to be hurt by it!

Right?

“Dark Matter doesn’t hurt people, it makes them evil.” Cole explains. “It doesn’t kill, it corrupts. Honestly, I’m not sure which one is worse.”

Jay stares. “That- that’s not fair! That’s cheating!”

“It’s a loophole.” The vampire corrects. “There’s a difference.”

“You can’t turn everyone in Ninjago evil!” Jay protests. “You can’t mess with people’s minds like that! They have free will, they-”

Cole places a hand on his shoulder, clearly attempting to be reassuring. “Jay, look. I get it. This isn’t fair, and it’s not ideal. But it's the way things are going to go down, so you’re gonna have to get used to it. Kai’ll be able to talk the Overlord out of infecting you with it. Its going to be okay.”

Jay shakes his head, pushing Cole’s hand off of him. “How can you say something like that?! It’s  **_not_ ** going to be okay! People- everyone’s going to turn evil! How the Hell is this ‘okay’?! This is the furthest thing from okay!” He throws his hands up, emphasizing his statement.

The vampire sighs. “Look, there’s not a lot we can do about it. You’ll be fine, and- well, maybe everyone else won’t be, but you’ll be okay. You’ll live.”

“And what will I have left to live for, Cole? You know the only reason I’m holding out here is for my parents. What will I have left?” His voice drops to a whisper as he reaches the last question.

The Black Ninja hesitates, an unsure expression on his face. Quietly, almost like he doesn’t want to be heard, he murmurs, “You’ll have me.” It’s not so much a statement as it is an offer. But offering what, Jay isn’t sure.

There’s a short pause between them.

After a beat, Jay gives a nervous, confused laugh. “Uh, what?”

Cole looks away, and gives his own nervous laugh. “Nothing! Nothing. Uh, I’d offer you video games but Kai broke the-”

Jay narrows his eyes with a glare. “I don’t want to play video games! I want Ninjago to not turn evil!”

“Well, we couldn’t play video games anyway, Kai broke the- oh! I think we might have a backup TV!” Cole smiles, like that’s what Jay’s upset about.

The young adult stares at him. “I just said I  **_don’t_ ** want to play games!” He reminds the vampire angrily. 

Cole winces. “Sorry, sorry. I-”

A figure steps through the door. “We’re back.”

The vampire blinks in surprise, clearly glad for the change in subject. “That was fast.”

“Yeah, Wu wasn’t expecting both of us. Maybe he could have held off one, but both? We took him down pretty quick.” Morro smirks. “Jay fuck up anything else while we were gone?”

Cole gives Morro a look. “No, he didn’t. Where’s Kai?”

The ghost shakes his head in distaste. “He’s locking Wu in the dungeon. And before you ask, Zane is-”

The door opens. “Right here. I received a message from the Overlord.” Zane cuts straight to the point.

Cole nods with a bit of a wince. “Yeah, me too. I’m assuming-”

“We have a small amount of Dark Matter.” Zane talks over the immortal, his gaze landing on Jay.

The young adult quickly backs up, bumping into the coffee table. His glances over to Cole, hoping his panic is visible enough that the vampire will do something.

Cole does seem to notice, and steps in front of Jay, shielding him from Zane. “Why don’t we talk to Kai first?”

The Nindroid frowns. “We received orders-”

“ ** _I_** **_said_** , we’ll talk to Kai first.” Cole repeats.

Zane sighs, turning and walking out of the room. The door clicks shut behind him.

Morro watches him go, before turning back to the remaining two Ninja. “Dark Matter?” He questions.

“Evil mud.” Cole tells him.

“Evil mud?” Morro repeats, incredulous.

Cole looks like he’s fighting back a laugh. “That's what I said.”

The ghost sighs and shakes his head. “I shouldn’t be surprised by these things anymore.” He grumbles.

Jay smiles at Morro’s displeased expression. So far, he hasn’t liked the ghost all that much- mostly because he keeps talking about how weak the young adult must be- and his upset reactions are becoming somewhat amusing to the Blue Ninja.

“What’s got you so happy?” Morro snarls.

“Well, I’m not dead or dying, so that’s a pretty good reason to-” Jay freezes as he remembers that both vampires and ghosts qualify as ‘dead’.

Both of the undead glare at him, and the human gives a nervous laugh. “Uh. Pun unintended?”

Cole’s upset expression melts away, and he gives a sigh. “Don’t know why I wasn’t expecting jokes like that.” 

Morro continues glaring. “Kai told me not to do it, but I swear to the First Spinjitzu Master if you make a joke like that again-”

The vampire steps between the two of them. “Morro.” He warns.

The ghost sighs. “Fine, fine, I won’t. I don’t see why you’re so protective- it’s not like it would hurt him.”

Jay peeks over Cole’s shoulder, standing on his tip-toes. “Won’t do what?”

“Possess you.” Morro says it so nonchalantly that it takes a moment to register.

But once it does, Jay’s mind kicks into panic mode. Stumbling backward, he gives a ghost a horrified look. “I- I’m sorry,  **_WHAT_ ** ?! You asked to- you wanted to- why the Hell would you-”

Morro gives a sigh as he folds his arms, distracting the young adult from his thoughts. “Humans never change.”

Cole arches an eyebrow. “Do you really want them to?”

“Wha- what’s  **_that_ ** supposed to mean?!” Jay demands. “I’m a unique individual, thank you very much!”

Morro rolls his eyes, ignoring him. “Honestly? Yes. Yes, I really wish they would.”

Cole grumbles something under his breath, clearly annoyed by this answer.

Jay waves his arms around. “I’m human, and I’m standing right here! If you two could stop talking like I’m not, that’d be great!”

Morro rolls his eyes again. “You sure I can’t possess him? It’d make him shut up.”

Jay starts backing away. Thankfully, Cole isn’t facing him, and maybe no one will notice if he sneaks out of the room… 

“You really want to be inside of his head?” The vampire deadpans.

“I could do a complete takeover to avoid listening to his thoughts. That’s what I’m planning to do to Lloyd. It can cause psychological damage to the host if pushed for a long time, but we don’t really need to worry about that when it comes to the Green Ninja. If anything, the trauma will be an added bonus.” The ghost smirks.

“Yeah, no, you’re not allowed anywhere near Jay.” Cole decides.

“We’re not talking about him anymore, we’re talking about the Green Ninja.” Morro sighs, looking exasperated.

Jay continues trying to back out of the room. He’s made it about halfway to one of the doors. He’s not entirely sure where this specific one leads, but anywhere is better than here.

“Since when?” Cole crosses his arms. Jay can’t see his face, but the vampire sounds annoyed.

“Since five seconds ago, try to keep up.” Morro glares.

The door on the other side of the game room slams open, and a  **_very_ ** upset looking Kai stands there, his face one of pure unadulterated rage. He storms into the room, shoving both of the undead to the side as he makes his way to the coffee table.

Cole grabs his shoulder, slowing him down. “Kai, I know you’re upset, but maybe-”

The demon wrenches Cole’s arm off of him, growling. “Out of my way, boulder brains.”

The vampire backs off, putting his hands up. “Just a suggestion.” He gives a nervous smile.

Morro watches this with an intrigued expression on his face, analyzing the interaction. It makes Jay somewhat uncomfortable, almost like the ghost is sizing them up, trying to find their weaknesses.

Is this something he should tell Kai about? He feels like he should tell someone. But what if they get upset with him? Morro seems to be on their side. And Jay knows that he hasn’t been exactly trustworthy lately, so anything he says about Morro would most likely be taken as the young adult attempting to undermine them.

But what if the ghost is actually plotting against them? Then what? Jay not saying anything could result in them getting hurt!

Wait… why does he care if they get hurt? They’re trying to turn Ninjago evil! He should be excited about the idea of Morro betraying them!

But then why does he feel concerned? It’s not Kai he’s worried about, the human could care less about Kai. Zane’s been weird and…  **_off_ ** … ever since Jay met him. So that leaves… 

Cole. Jay’s worried about Cole. Why is he worried? The vampire can clearly take care of himself, for one thing. And oh, yeah, he’s also betrayed Jay to Kai twice now.

But the immortal seems to try to learn from his mistakes. Even though he works for Kai, he’s trying to help Jay. The young adult kinda owes him. If it wasn’t for the vampire, he’d probably be-

Oh, who is he kidding? If it wasn’t for Cole, Jay would still be pretending to be in love with Kai. Maybe- maybe it’s not that Jay owes him. Maybe it’s that the Black Ninja is the closest thing he has to a friend in this god-forsaken place.

Jay looks up, suddenly realizing that he was zoning out. What did he miss?

Kai turns away from Cole, his expression dark. Uh oh. What just happened? What did the vampire do?

The demon goes over to the coffee table and slams his hand down on the metallic disk. The 2-D hologram from before pops up, and Kai glowers at the red eyed blob.

“We’re not infecting Jay.” Without waiting for a response, he smacks the disk again, making the hologram disappear.

The two undead stare at Kai like he’s grown a second head. Something tells Jay that the demon has made an impulsive decision that could wind up biting them in the ass later.

Huffing, Kai turns back over to them, his gaze dark. After a tense moment, he storms over to Jay, grabbing the human by the arm and dragging him out of the room.

Fighting back a sigh, Jay lets himself get dragged. Kai seems really fond of pulling the human around, and fighting back will only make him upset. 

After a few minutes, Kai drags Jay into his room, kicking the door shut behind him. The young adult tenses up. What did he do now? Is Kai going to- is he going to-

Wordlessly, the demon wraps his arms around Jay, clutching him to his chest. Thankfully, he doesn’t seem inclined to do anything more. He just stands there, holding the young adult close.

Jay blinks, stiffening up more. This could be a lead up to- to- to  **_that_ ** . “Uh-”

“I want a hug, and you’re going to give it to me.” The demon growls. He buries his face into the crook of the human’s neck, his grip around him tightening.

Slowly, waiting for an adverse reaction, Jay picks up his own arms and carefully puts them around the immortal. When the only reaction is a quiet murmur into his neck, he gives the demon a light squeeze.

There’s quiet muffled noises coming from Kai as the demon starts to shake, and for a moment, Jay thinks he might be getting angry, or maybe even laughing.

It’s only when he feels wetness dripping onto his shoulder that he realizes what’s going on.

Kai, the demon overlord, is crying.

Wha- what? That doesn’t make any sense. He’s- he’s  **_Kai_ ** . He shouldn’t be- he can’t be- why the Hell would he be-

Kai lifts his head a little, and he gives a quiet whisper, barely loud enough to be heard.

“I don’t want to lose you.”

Then he puts his head back down and squeezes Jay even tighter, desperately trying to pull him closer as he sobs.

Instinctively, the young adult hugs back, trying to comfort him. It takes him a good five seconds to realize what he’s doing and to fully register the fact that he’s hugging the demon overlord.

Jay attempts to let go of Kai and back up, but when he starts to pull his arms away the demon lets loose a growl, something so dark and heavy that it seems to reverberate through the room, shaking the human to his core.

So he puts his arms back and continues with the hug, Kai crying into his shoulder. The demon’s grip around Jay is so tight that he’s positive he’s going to be covered in bruises.

But at least it’s just a hug. At least Kai isn’t trying anything. At least he’s safe. At least his parents are safe.

Honestly, when Jay takes a step back and looks at his situation, things could be worse. They aren’t exactly good right now, but they could definitely be a lot worse.

Hesitantly, the young adult starts to formulate a response to Kai’s previous statement. The time for answering has long since passed, but-

“You’re not going to lose me. I’m right here.” The human promises. “I’m right here.”

They stay there for a good fifteen minutes, holding each other close. By the time the demon pulls away, Jay is nearing the breaking point. Sure, close contact with someone is fine, but being suffocated by a hug from a guy you don’t like for fifteen minutes straight? It’s enough to make anyone get a little uncomfortable.

The demon sniffles a little, wiping away the last remnants of his tears. His eyes are red- well, the irises aren’t glowing crimson or anything, but you get his point.

Jay just kinda stands there, waiting for Kai to say something. But to his dismay, the demon just walks into the side room, leaving the human alone.

“What the Hell just happened?” He whispers to himself as he sinks to the ground. “What the actual Hell?”

  
  



	14. Can’t Sleep

When Kai exits the bathroom, he wastes no time getting straight to the point. “You can’t tell anyone about this.”

Jay gets up from his spot on the floor where he was having his internal crisis. “My lips are sealed. Heh.” He gives a nervous smile.

Kai seems satisfied with this response, and gestures for Jay to follow him as he walks out of the room. The human complies with the request, letting the demon lead him back into the game room.

When they reach it, Morro is no longer there, and Cole appears to be trying to help Zane through a mental breakdown.

Kai looks at the two of them with a wary expression. “What’s going on here?” The concern is evident in his tone.

Zane snaps his head over to Kai, his expression fading from stress to anger. He gets up from his spot on the couch, ignoring Cole’s attempts to stop him.

The Nindroid walks right up to Kai, getting into his face. “What were you thinking when you did that?” The cold anger in his tone is even more terrifying than the burning rage that the demon shows, and Jay finds himself backing away.

Kai sighs. “Yeah, I know that I probably shouldn’t have-”

“You hung up on the Overlord.” Zane interrupts, his neon eyes narrowed.

“Yeah. I did.” The demon admits.

“Why?”

“He wanted to turn Jay evil.” Kai explains, sounding somewhat annoyed just remembering the occurrence.

“I fail to see the downside to this.” Zane makes direct eye contact with Kai, and Jay slowly starts making his way over to Cole. He wants no part in this whatsoever.

“He- he wouldn’t be  **_Jay_ ** anymore.” The demon argues, but he sounds less confident than he did before.

Uh oh. Kai isn’t going to be okay with this, is he? Zane isn’t going to convince him that- no. No, while the demon has issues, he’s already made up his mind. And Jay’s witnessed firsthand how stubborn he can be. Jay’ll be fine.

Won’t he?

“Your first reaction to seeing him was falling for his physical form. The Jay we’ve interacted with has only betrayed us. Why does keeping his mind intact matter? He would be more capable of assisting us while under the effects of Dark Matter. Why are you resisting it so much?”

Kai crosses his arms.“Because.”

Called it. For the first time, Kai’s stubbornness is working out in Jay’s favor! 

“That is not a good excuse for disobeying the Overlord.” Zane notes.

“Do I need an excuse? I do what I want.” The demon snaps with a glare. 

Zane seems exasperated. “Kai, you’re going to get yourself killed. Go apologize.” The Nindroid glares daggers.

The demon seems completely unaffected by the look shot his way. “I’ll apologize when he does!”

“He doesn’t have anything to apologize for!” Zane protests. He looks near snapping. Which is fair, Kai  **_is_ ** pretty infuriating. But at least the infuriating-ness is on his side.

By this point, Jay has made it over to where Cole stands, and he hides behind the vampire. Neither of them say anything, but speaking isn’t really necessary at this point. The two of them continue to silently watch the argument.

“He wanted to turn Jay evil!” Kai protests angrily, uncrossing his arms in favor of gesturing wildly.

“He wants to turn all of the humans evil! What makes Jay so special? There are millions just like him.” Zane argues.

Uh…  **_hey_ ** ?! Way to be offensive. Jay is his own person, he is  **_unique_ ** . Not everyone is stupid enough to make a deal with a demon. It takes a special kind of dumbass to do that. 

“Something makes me doubt that.” Kai looks over to where Jay was previously, then does a double-take as he realizes that he’s not there anymore. Scanning the room, his gaze lands on the human, and he gives a soft smile.

Zane grits his teeth. “Kai-”

“I’m not apologizing, and we’re not letting him turn evil.” The demon snaps, eyes snapping away from Jay to glare at the Nindroid.

“Do I get a say in this?” Cole pipes up. “Because I agree with Kai.”

“Thank you.” Kai nods with a smirk aimed in Zane’s direction. 

Zane groans. “At the very least, you should apologize for your rude behavior!”

“ **_Fine_ ** . But Jay stays clear of Dark Matter.” Kai decides. 

Just then, Morro makes his way back into the room. “You guys realize it’s past the human’s bedtime, right? Most mortals don’t stay up this late.”

With a start, Jay glances at the clock. It’s nearly eleven! Things have been so hectic that he hasn’t even thought about-

Wait. Where’s he going to sleep? Hopefully not with Kai, he’s not sure he could handle being that close to the demon. Not after he- not now that- look, he’s made his point.

Kai looks up in shock. “When did it get so late?” He quickly shakes his head, turning to Jay and Cole. “If you’d take him to the guest room, that’d be great. We can start up the camera in the morning.”

Zane gives Kai a look. “And you’re going to apologize before going to bed.” He reminds.

Before Jay can hear the response, Cole grabs his arm and takes him out of the room. “For once in his life, Morro is right about something.” 

Jay glances at the vampire. “No love lost between you two then, huh?”

Cole snorts. “Understatement of the millennium. It’s because of him that I’m a vampire.”

Jay can only stare, stopping in his tracks. “Wha- what?”

The vampire pauses beside him, smirking. “You didn’t think I was born like this, did you?” 

“No?”

“Is that a question or an answer?” Cole starts walking again, and Jay trails dumbly behind him.

Morro got Cole turned into a vampire? That means that before all of this, he  **_wasn’t_ ** a vampire. He was- he must’ve been-

“You used to be human?” Jay blurts out, his mind racing. Well of course! Vampires aren’t born vampires, they’re turned!

But wasn’t Cole supposed to be the only vampire?

“I’d rather not talk about that.” Said vampire starts walking faster, clearly eager to get to their destination.

“I-  **_you used to be human_ ** .” Jay repeats in awe. How did he not realize this before? It makes perfect sense! Except for one small little detail…

How did he end up working for Kai?

“ **_I said_ ** , I don’t want to talk about it.” Cole gives the human a sharp look, but at the terrified expression Jay must be making, he softens a little. “Look, I’m just not feeling up for that, okay? We can talk about it later.”

“Does ‘later’ have a date attached to it?” Jay prompts.

Cole doesn’t answer the question, instead choosing to push open a door that Jay recognizes as the guest room from previously. “And I hope you enjoy your stay at Kai’s Castle.” He says with mock cheer.

Jay gives a small smile. “Thanks.” He shocks himself with the sincerity that colors his tone.

Judging from the falter in Cole’s performance, the vampire is just as taken aback as he is. The two stand there for a long moment as they make eye contact. If Jay wasn’t surprised by his own voice, he was definitely surprised by the softness in Cole’s eyes.

The vampire clears his throat, looking away. If Jay didn’t know any better, he’d say that the red tint on his face was a blush. 

“I, uh… I’ll see you tomorrow.” The immortal quickly takes his leave, practically running down the halls in his attempt to escape.

Sighing, Jay goes inside the room. It looks exactly as he remembers it. It’s only been about two days and his life has already changed so much. Trying not to think about it, he slides the door shut and throws himself on the bed.

He lays there for a moment, tiredly trying to process the events of the day. His brain keeps flicking back to that morning, to the  **_thing_ ** he’s worked so hard not to think about.

Jumping up, Jay changes into his pajamas. It’s something to focus on, something to think about. He’d rather not think about anything that’s related to what Kai did.

And then, after he’s pulled the shirt over his head, he’s left with nothing to do. Nothing to do but be alone with his thoughts. 

Shaking his head, he turns off the lights and gets under the covers. He closes his eyes and wills himself to fall asleep.

Despite the softness of the sheets, Jay can’t get comfortable. He can’t stop thinking about earlier. He can’t stop thinking about what Kai did. His brain unhelpfully provides flashes of images from before, words that were whispered into his ear, echoes of the feelings that wracked his body.

He clamps his hands over his ears and screws his eyes shut tighter, trying to get it out of his head. He doesn’t want to think about this! He doesn’t want to remember. He doesn’t want to feel like this. He doesn’t want to relive the experience.

His brain refuses to let go of it, constantly reminding him of what happened. With nothing to distract him, there’s no reason  **_not_ ** to think about it.

Except for the fact that he doesn’t want to. But his brain doesn’t really seem to care what he wants.

Jay sits up. “I need to brush my teeth!” He’s been so distracted that he’s off his routine! Getting up, he goes over to his bag and pulls out his toiletries. 

All too quickly, he’s finished, and is right back to ruminating over- ruminating over- look, he’s stuck thinking about what Kai did. And he really doesn’t want to be.

Sighing, Jay goes back to bed, pulling up the covers once more. His mind is full of thoughts and images that he just can’t shake. 

_ ‘ “Let’s see just how loud I can make you scream.” ‘ _

He curls up in a ball, hands over his ears as he desperately tries to block it out.

_ ‘ “You don’t really want me to stop. Deep down, you want this.” ‘ _

Shaking, the young adult curls up tighter, pressing his face against his knees. His hands pull his legs closer as he desperately tries to  **_stop thinking_ ** .

_ ‘ “Made for me. Perfect for me. My cock stretching you out, you take me so well, doing so good for me.” ‘ _

It’s then that Jay realizes he’s crying. Crying as he tries to block out the thoughts, block out the memories. He shudders, recalling the feelings that wracked his body. The mix of pleasure and pain. 

What hurts the most was the fact that even though he didn’t want it, he wasn’t okay with it…  **_he enjoyed it_ ** .

It makes him want to vomit. What is  **_wrong_ ** with him?! How could he- it’s like his body betrayed him. He never wants to be touched like that again. Never wants to hear Kai’s voice. He just wants to be okay again. He just wants to feel okay.

Things were fine before, when he had distractions. When he could argue with Cole or worry about Morro. But now? Now he’s stuck with his thoughts, stuck with the memories.

Trembling, Jay gets up. He starts to pace the room on wobbly legs, running a hand through his hair as he tries to think of something to drag his mind away from this. There’s got to be something he can do! He’d go bother Cole, but their last interaction was…  **_odd_ ** , and the vampire would most likely send him back to bed. He’d talk to Kai, but he never wants to see his face or hear his name ever again. And Zane… well, Jay’s not really eager to talk to the guy who wanted him infected with Dark Matter.

So that leaves Morro. Heh. What’s the worst that could happen?

Shakily, Jay pushes open the door and starts to walk down the hall, searching for the ghost. Ghosts don’t sleep, so he should be awake.

Wait… do ghosts sleep? He’s not sure. He thought that sunlight was bad for vampires, but that turned out not to be true. So maybe ghosts do sleep and this is just a waste of-

“You looking for something?”

Jay flinches, quickly spinning around to find the owner of the voice.

Morro. Just the guy he wanted to see.

The ghost arches an eyebrow, and Jay realizes that he was asked a question. “Oh! Uh, yeah. I was looking for you, actually.”

The ghost blinks in surprise, but quickly hides the expression under a mask of indifference. “Why?” He demands.

“I, uh, I couldn’t sleep.” Jay admits somewhat sheepishly. “Wanted to talk to someone.”

“And you chose  **_me_ ** ?” Morro sounds almost offended by this, though Jay can’t imagine why. Is he really so bad to talk to? 

“Well, better you than Kai. Are- are you willing to talk with me?” He gives a nervous smile. He knows that he can be annoying sometimes, but he’s not  **_that_ ** bad… right?

Morro looks at him skeptically. “Sure. Why not?”

The two of them stand in silence for a moment, and Jay awkwardly looks around the room, trying not to be weird.

“You said you want to talk. So go ahead. Talk.” Morro’s expression changes to something more sinister, like he suddenly came up with a plan.

It makes Jay even less inclined to talk to the ghost, but it’s this or go back to bed and think about- think about-

The young adult cuts off his own thoughts with a shake off his head, and redirects his attention to Morro. But now that he’s free to talk, he has no idea what to talk about.

“Cole said that you got him turned into a vampire.” He blurts out, and immediately regrets it. Oh, why did he just say that?! If Cole wanted Morro to know how he felt, he would’ve told the ghost himself!

The undead blinks in surprise, his dark expression faltering under his confusion. “I, uh… well, that-” He cuts himself off, shaking his head. “I was involved with that, yes.”

“I thought that only vampires could make other people vampires.” Jay prompts. He already dug himself into a hole, why not dig it deeper?

“Magic can do the trick just as well.” Morro explains. “I-”

“How’d you die?” The words fall out of his mouth, and Jay stands there in mute horror as he realizes what he just asked.

Morro narrows his eyes, a furious expression crossing his face. But just as quickly as it came, it fades away, replaced by a deathly calm. It left almost too quickly, judging by the amount of rage that was behind it.

“I thought I was the Green Ninja.” 

It takes Jay a moment to fully register what he’s heard. Morro thought he was the Green Ninja. The one destined to defeat Kai.

Oh.

Jay’s words overlap and cut each other off as he struggles to form a proper sentence. “Did- Kai didn’t- if Kai was the one who killed you-”

“He wasn’t. I went to the Dark Island. I found the portal that leads to Hell. I tried to take on the entirety of the Stone Army by myself.” Morro laughs, but there’s no humor behind it. “They have thousands of soldiers. I couldn’t even defeat one.”

Jay blinks. The Stone Army… Cole mentioned them before. They must be the Overlord’s forces! But if Morro couldn’t even take down one, and Kai considers him worthy enough to be an ally…

Just how powerful are these guys?

The young adult shakes his mind from the Stone Army and redirects his attention to Morro. “How’d you meet Kai, then?”

“It’s my turn to ask a question.” The ghost smirks. “A conversation goes two ways, you know.”

Jay quickly nods, mentally facepalming. Right. He isn’t just interrogating Morro. And as curious as he is, it’s only fair to let the ghost ask questions of his own.

“Why are you scared of Kai?” Morro asks, his tone and expression laced with false innocence.

The human freezes as his mind jumps back to earlier. Back to what the demon did. Back to the words murmured in his ear, back to the sensations that raced through him.

“What makes you say I’m afraid of him?” He counters with a shaky voice. And if it wasn’t for the fear that was surely reflected across his face, the argument might have almost been convincing.

Morro sighs. “Its obvious, really. And don’t try to tell me that its an uncomfortable topic- you’re the one who asked me how I died.”

Jay winces as he realizes that the ghost is right. He dug his own grave with the personal line of questions.

“He, uh. He doesn’t take no for an answer.” Jay admits, hoping that the undead being will leave it at that.

But since when has Jay been so lucky?

“And you’re scared of where he might go with that.” Morro nods. “That’s fair.”

And it would be so easy to just nod and agree, to just let the ghost think that he’s afraid of what might happen. But fair is fair. Morro already told him, so now it’s Jay’s turn to explain. “No, he’s uh… he’s already taken it to that point.” The human whispers, barely audible. His voice cracks, further illustrating his fear.

Morro’s eyes widen. “I didn’t think he’d go that far.” He murmurs. And his words would have almost been consoling if it wasn’t for the dark smile that followed shortly after.

Jay backs up a little, unnerved by the almost evil expression on the ghost’s face. “I didn’t either, but here we are.” 

Morro opens his mouth to say something, but a sudden creak of a floorboard startles them both, and the two turn to see a familiar face. Well, familiar to Jay anyways.

Lloyd, garbed in a gi not unlike the one that Jay wears, freezes as the two notice him. His mask covers his face, so the human can’t quite make out his expression, but the fear in his eyes is unmistakable.

Morro and Lloyd lock eyes, both silently daring the other to make the first move.

Jay stares at the angel in disbelief. Just how stupid is this guy?! He returns the same day that he escapes! How dumb do you have to be to just waltz back in here?

Morro’s surprise turns into a smirk as he sizes up the situation. All three of them know that Lloyd is outmatched. Jay feels his heart sink. This is it. This is the fall of the Green Ninja.

“Lloyd Garmadon. A pleasure.” Morro is the first one to speak.

The angel reaches over into one of the folds of his uniform, and Jay suddenly realizes that it’s a pocket. But what-

“Hands up, kid.” The ghost orders. “We still have a hostage, in case you forgot.”

Oh, yeah. That’s why Lloyd came back! Maybe he’s not as stupid as Jay first thought. He’s brave.

Walking the line between bravery and stupidity, but still, maybe he’s more on the brave side than Jay previously considered.

The Green Ninja slowly puts his hands up, locking them behind his head. His fear is clearly visible, even with so much off his face covered.

“Jay, take off his mask.” Morro demands.

Albeit reluctantly, the human does as he’s told, walking over to the teen and flipping off his hood. Jay winces as he notices the horrible burns that cover his face.

“I’m sorry for everything. I never meant to hurt you.” He whispers. Lloyd doesn’t respond, but the weak smile he receives speaks for itself.

Jay goes back over to where he was standing previously, beside the ghost. But Morro doesn’t stay put. He walks up to Lloyd, getting right in his face. But to the young adult’s surprise, he doesn’t say anything. He just stands there for a moment, studying the angel.

And then he steps forward, stepping  **_into_ ** Lloyd, vanishing as he does so. The teen falls over, his eyes wide with shock. His breathing spikes for a moment, and Jay watches in horror as he goes limp and stops breathing altogether.

But before the human can rush over, the angel’s chest starts to move, signalling that he’s breathing. With a dark chuckle, he gets to his feet. 

His hair starts to fade from golden blond to charcoal black. The process takes only a few seconds, but the effect it has on his appearance is huge.

His eyes slowly open, glowing an unnatural shade of green as Morro takes total control of his host.

And those eyes, those dark, eerie eyes that glow with bitterness and rage, are the last thing Jay sees before the world around him goes dark.

He doesn’t even feel himself hit the floor.

  
  



	15. Morro’s Less Evil Than Expected

Jay wakes up to the ghost- angel-  **_whatever he is_ ** \- leaning over him.

“M-Morro?” Jay asks. His mouth feels almost numb, and he’s not even sure if he really speaks. But judging from the smirk that he gets in reply, he not only spoke, but he was right.

Lloyd- no, not Lloyd,  **_Morro_ ** \- helps the human to his feet. “It’s been a while since I’ve had a physical body!” He smirks. “But I think this might be one of the best ones I’ve ever had.”

Jay stares in horror at the ghost, stumbling backward. He’s- he’s possessing the Green Ninja! This shouldn’t be possible! This can’t be-

According to the prophecy, as long as Jay sides with Lloyd, Kai will lose, the Overlord will lose! But how can they win if the prophesied one is possessed?!

This doesn’t make any sense! How-

“You look stressed.” Lloyd- Morro-  **_gak_ ** . That’s it, he’s coming up with a nickname for the possessed version of Lloyd.

Hmmm… what about Green? Lloyd’s the Green Ninja, and ghosts are outlined in faint green. So it would make sense for him to be Green.

Its then that Jay realizes that Green said something. And he didn’t hear it because he was too busy worrying over what to call him.

“I’m not going to hurt you.” Green sighs. “I’m still Morro.”

… that’s not what Jay is concerned about, but sure, they can go with that.

“Heh, uh, yeah, sorry, I was just concerned about Lloyd murdering me. That is totally what I was worried about. Heh.” He flashes the possessed angel a fake smile.

“Didn’t Kai say you weren't allowed to lie?” Green arches an eyebrow.

“Uh…” Jay glances away, his internal panic rising. But then something clicks. “I’m allowed to lie to the Green Ninja.”

Green groans. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“Heh.” Jay starts backing up. “Uh, you know, I think it’s past my bedtime. I should really get going.”

“You were the one who wanted to talk.”

“I changed my-” Jay cuts himself off, remembering what his brain will most likely do if he goes back to bed. “-yeah, okay. Should we go tell the others that you’re in control of Lloyd?”

Green sighs. “I suppose. You know where we can find them?”

“I know where Kai’s room is, no idea where to find Cole. And I’m not sure if Zane even sleeps.” Jay tenses up as he realizes he’s going to have to talk to Kai again. Nothing has changed since the last time they talked- well, nothing other than him remembering exactly why he hates him so much- but Jay is really nervous about seeing the demon again. He doesn’t want- he might try to- Kai said he wouldn’t, but what if he-

“Lead the way.” Green interrupts his train of thought, and Jay shakes himself back to the present. As of right now, Kai isn’t there, and he’s not trying anything. As of right now, Jay is safe. Just focus on the present moment.

Wordlessly, he makes his way to Kai’s room, growing more and more tense with every step. He has to remind himself that it’s okay, that Kai won’t try anything- at least not with Green around. 

He’s trembling by the time they reach the door. He’s sure that the possessed angel has noticed, but he doesn’t comment on it.

Hands shaking, Jay quietly knocks on the door. “Kai? You up?”

There’s muffled noises from inside, and after a few moments, a groggy looking Kai opens the door with a glare. “What d’you w-” His question falls off when he realizes that it’s Jay. “Oh. Hey.”

The human looks at the floor. “Uh, Lloyd showed up.” He gestures to Green.

Kai’s eyes widen as he notices the possessed angel. He steps into a fighting stance, clearly preparing to battle, but Green puts his hands up in a symbol of surrender. 

“It’s Morro.” Green smirks. It’s somewhat bothering to see Morro’s expressions on Lloyd’s face. Not that he knew Lloyd too well, but that smug smile just doesn’t seem to fit him.

Kai relaxes some, turning to Jay. “Is he really? The no-lying rule applies.” 

The human nods, eyes flickering up to meet Kai’s, if only for a moment. “Yeah. He’s, uh, he’s definitely Morro. Well, I’m calling him Green, because Lloyd’s the Green Ninja and ghosts are outlined in the same color, but-”

The demon cuts him off by raising his hand, clearly requesting silence. “Green. I like it.” He smirks, glancing at the possessed angel.

Green groans. “I’m still Morro, I’m just in a different body.” He protests.

“Too bad, we’re calling you Green now. Was there anything else you guys wanted?” Kai looks at Jay, clearly hoping for something.

Whatever it is, Jay probably doesn’t want to give it to him, based off of the demon’s recent actions. Well, towards the end of the day he got a little bit better, but-

“Yeah.” Green interrupts his thoughts. “I need to talk to you about Jay. Privately.”

Uh. What? Why does Green want to talk about him? What did he do? The young adult wracks his brain, trying to think about what he might’ve done, but the only thing he can come up with is that he lied to him under the excuse of being able to lie to Lloyd.

Unless he wants to talk about what Jay told him before that, when they were asking each other questions. But would he really talk to Kai about it? It’s not any of his business, really. Hopefully he’s just reading into things too much, and the possessed angel just wants to complain about how weak humans are again.

Yeah, that’s it. That’s all that it is. 

Kai sighs. “Can it wait til tomorrow?”

“No.” Green pushes his way past the demon, into his room. He closes the door behind them, leaving Jay alone.

To eavesdrop or not to eavesdrop, that is the question.

Screw it, its not like Kai can do anything worse than what he’s already done. Quietly, Jay sneaks up and presses his ear against the door. 

“-me what you did.” Green sounds annoyed, maybe on the verge of actual anger.

“I’ve done a lot of things, you’ll have to be more specific.” Kai shoots back, but his voice tinged with unease.

“You know what I’m talking about, demon. I didn’t have much faith in you to begin with, but knowing you did  **_that_ ** to a helpless human, I think I’ve lost all respect for you.” Green snarls.

Okay, so they are going to talk about that. Wonderful.

“First of all, Jay is far from helpless. He’s the Master of Lightning. Second, why do you even care?” Kai snaps.

“I don’t.” Even Jay can notice the lie, which is impressive for two reasons. One, he’s  **_Jay_ ** , and he’s oblivious. Two, he’s not even in the room with them.

“Uh huh, and I’m the First Spinjitzu Master. Look, I didn’t hurt him, so I don’t see why everyone’s so upset about it.” Kai falls back on his previous argument.

“You hurt him. Maybe he’s physically unharmed, but he’s known me for a few hours and he’s more comfortable talking to me than he is you.” Green points out.

“I know that he’s scared of me, but he’ll warm up eventually.” The demon brushes him off.

“Not after that. Maybe he would have eventually, but now? No, you’re lucky he doesn’t burst into tears just seeing you.” The possessed angel scoffs. “You hurt him, Kai. You hurt him in a way that he might never recover from.”

“This doesn’t make any sense.” Kai groans. Jay can practically  **_see_ ** the frustrated expression he must be wearing.

“It’s called trauma. We’ll be lucky if he doesn’t end up with PTSD.” Green continues.

“Wha- PTSD? No. That’s not how that works. He hasn’t gone to war, he just-”

“You need to get him a therapist or something, as soon as possible. I’d say we just wipe his memory of the event, but I think he deserves to know the monster you are.” Green snarls.

Nope, Jay would much rather not remember. Sure, maybe he’d give Kai too much trust, but he’d rather not know. Rather not have to think about it.

“How is this such a big deal? It’s not like I hurt him.” The demon repeats his earlier argument.

“You  **_did_ ** hurt him. I wouldn’t be surprised if the reason he couldn’t fall asleep was because he was too scared. You can’t control humans with fear. It’ll work for a while, but eventually he’s going to snap. And the First Spinjitzu Master won’t be able to help you when he does.”

“Is that a threat?” Kai snarls.

“It could be.” Green sounds almost nonchalant.

“Jay belongs to me. You don’t get to tell me what to do with him.” The demon reminds, anger tingeing his tone.

“Just some friendly advice.” And with that, Green opens the door. Jay quickly backs up and tries to look innocent.

Kai stares at Green in disbelief. “We’re not done here.” He snarls, grabbing the possessed angel by the shoulder.

Green pulls his hand off. “I am. I’ve made my point. If you continue to do what you’ve been doing, well, at least I tried.” 

“Why do you care so much?” Kai repeats.

Jay awkwardly backs up and pretends he’s not listening.

“Maybe humans aren’t as pathetic as I remembered.” And with that, Green walks off. As he passes Jay, he grabs him by the arm, dragging the young adult behind him.

Why do people like dragging Jay around so much? What is it about him that makes people want to acquaint him with the floor?

He gives Kai a small wave as he’s dragged away. And to his surprise- and delight- Kai doesn’t follow them. He just stands there, dumbstruck.

Green drags Jay back to his room, letting go as he passes the doorway. The young adult just kind of lays there as the possessed angel walks away.

It takes him a few moments to get his bearings, but when he does, he’s struck by memories of what happened the last time he tried to go to sleep.

Getting to his feet, Jay walks off in a different direction. He can’t talk to Green, too stressed for Cole, Zane wants him infected, and he’s not willing to be alone with Kai.

Hmm. Maybe he could try going to the dungeons to talk to this ‘Wu’ guy. He seems like a pretty big deal. And maybe he could explain what happened to Lloyd. Ask for some advice.

That settles it. Down to the dungeons it is.

So Jay walks through several hallways and down the stairs to the cells, trying to be stealthy. Not that it matters. No matter how quiet he is, if any of the others are nearby, they’d notice him in a heartbeat.

He makes it to the dungeons without being noticed- well, unless Cole is stalking him. But Jay’s not going to worry about that.

Once he makes it down, he scans the room, and his eyes fall on the old man in the last cell. It’s almost like they never use the same cell twice.

It takes Jay a moment to register the wings on his back.

So Wu is also an angel. Is Jay seriously the only human involved in this mess?

The angel is tied to the wall, and appears to be meditating, with his legs folded and his eyes shut tight. Quietly, Jay makes his way to the front of the cell.

Well, here he is. He wanted to talk to Wu, and he’s standing right in front of him. So what’s he waiting for?

“Blue Ninja.” The angel greets, opening his eyes. “What brings you here?”

Jay glances to the side. Just how much should he say? He sits down in front of the cell, debating what he should tell the old man. 

“You’re Wu, right?” The young adult asks.

“That is what I am known as.” The angel confirms. “What troubles you?”

Jay hesitates for a few moments. Well, if he wants advice, he should probably explain what’s wrong. “Kai.” He admits. “Kai troubles me. But Lloyd getting possesed isn’t exactly helping my stress levels.”

“Morro got ahold of him.” Wu notes.

Jay nods. “Yeah. I’m calling the two of them Green.”

Wu gives a small smile. “That fits them better than you know.”

There’s a pause between them, Jay not entirely sure what to say. Wu seems perfectly okay with the silence, so maybe that means it’s not awkward?

Even if its not awkward, Jay came here to talk, and talk he will. 

“I need some advice.” The young adult admits. 

“What troubles you?” He repeats.

Jay realizes that the angel was offering advice the whole time. Mentally facepalming, he glances to the side. “Kai- he- well, he did something. Something unforgivable. But he doesn’t even know he did anything wrong.” Jay sighs, putting his head in his hands. “I don’t want to work for him, but I don’t have a choice. I can’t risk my family getting hurt.”

“Become a pupil.” Wu recommends.

Isn’t- isn’t a pupil a part of the eye? Did- Oh! He means a student! But still, a student to who? To learn what? 

“Huh?” Jay frowns.

“The only way to learn is to study.” The old angel gives a small smile. He carries a knowing look in his eye, and Jay has a feeling that if he knew what was going on, he’d be able to learn almost anything from this guy.

“I have no idea what you’re saying.” The young adult admits, somewhat sheepishly. Is he supposed to understand? Well, probably. Most people don’t talk to hear their own voice.

“Learn from Kai. See who he is. Only then will you find your peace.” Wu explains.

Except that explains absolutely nothing.

“Could you repeat that in English?” He prompts the angel. If he could just understand, maybe he would actually be able to figure things out. From what he can tell of this guy, he holds all the answers Jay needs.

If only he would explain them properly.

Wu merely smiles in response to his question.

“Okaaaaay.” Jay starts backing away. Maybe this wasn’t the best idea. Maybe he shouldn’t have done this. 

As he’s making his way to the stairs- still going backwards- he bumps into something. Spinning around, he finds himself face-to-face with Cole.

The vampire picks him up and slings him over his shoulder, walking out of the dungeons and back to Jay’s room. Jay stays silent as they walk down the halls. He’s not sure what to say. Once they reach his room, Cole sets the human down outside the door and sighs.

“Shouldn’t you be in bed?” He sounds exasperated.

“Couldn’t sleep.” Jay offers, but the excuse sounds weak even to him. 

“Maybe that’s because you were only laying there for thirty seconds.” Cole grumbles, crossing his arms. If Jay didn’t know any better, he’d say that the vampire had been-

“How- were you spying on me again?!” Jay demands. Why does he keep doing this? He has a right to privacy!

Well, under Kai he technically doesn’t have any rights… 

Cole hesitates a moment too long. “... no.”

“Why do you keep doing that? It’s creepy.” Jay shudders over-dramatically to emphasize his point.

“I’m trying to keep you safe.” The immortal drops the pretense of not doing it.

“From what?” Jay glares, puffing out his chest in an attempt to be more intimidating. 

“From who.” Cole corrects, glancing to the side.

The human narrows his eyes. He doesn’t need to worry about being spied on on top of everything else. “You don’t think that I can take care of myself?”

“Kai and Morro.” The vampire explains. And they both know that when it comes to them, Jay would lose in pretty much anything.

“Cole, I appreciate the concern, but I don’t want you stalking me.” The young adult is starting to grow exasperated. How is he supposed to help Lloyd if he’s got Cole leaning over his shoulder?

“I’m protecting you.” The vampire repeats.

Jay sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I get that, but-”

“But nothing. Jay, I don’t want you getting hurt.” The immortal sounds almost  **_desperate_ ** . He looks like he’s seconds away from getting down on his knees to beg.

Jay’s not entirely sure why he says it. Maybe it’s because he’s sleep deprived. Maybe he just snapped. Maybe it’s because he’s just so tired of the deck being stacked against him. Whatever the reason, the words that fall out of his mouth are tinged with unmistakable malice and hostility.

“Funny, you didn’t seem to care much about that this morning.”

Cole grimances, and he glances away, refusing to make eye contact. He scratches the back of his neck as he sighs. Jay knows he’s struck a nerve, but he’s not entirely sure how to apologize- or if he even wants to.

It’s Cole who speaks up first.

“I know I’ve made some mistakes. I know that the part I played in this hurt you. And I’m sorry. I’m sorry for how hostile I was when you first showed up. I’m sorry for the way I teased you. I’m sorry for telling Kai about your lie. I’m sorry that I didn’t do more for you. But that’s why I’m doing this. Because I hurt you, and I regret it. And I don’t want to see you hurt ever again.” 

… how does Jay reply to something like that?

“Uh. That sounds kinda gay.”

Stupid, stupid,  **_stupid_ ** ! Why did he say that?!  **_That’s_ ** how he responds? Cole goes and basically pours his heart out, and Jay just- he just-

What the Hell is wrong with him?!

Cole gives a small, nervous smile. “That might be because I am gay.”

Jay stands there for a full ten seconds, waiting for the sentence to register. When it clicks, his brain decides that this is a perfect moment to out himself. “I’m bi.”

Why. Why is Jay like this? Why does he do this to himself?

Cole blinks in surprise, clearly not expecting that response. “I- oh. I, uh, after the whole fake relationship thing, I guess I kinda assumed you were straight.”

The young adult just kind of stands there, unsure of what to say. This got awkward real quick. He needs to say something, say  **_anything_ ** -

“Morro is possessing Lloyd and I’m calling the fusion version of them ‘Green’.”

Wow, that was real subtle.

Cole glances to the side, looking somewhat sheepish. “I saw. I was there when you were talking to Kai.”

“Exactly how long have you been following me?” Jay arches an eyebrow, crossing his arms.

“Let’s not talk about that.” The vampire gives a nervous chuckle.

The human sighs as he uncrosses his arms. He looks up at the immortal, about to give one last shot of convincing him not to follow him everywhere. “Cole-”

“Stop looking at me like that.” Cole interjects.

“Like what?” Jay blinks, confused. He wasn’t even doing anything.

“Like a kicked puppy.” The vampire grumbles. “It’s unfair.”

“A kicked-  **_excuse me_ ** , I do not resemble a puppy!” Jay glares, his face flushing bright red.

“No, no, I’m telling you that you’re being too adorable.” Cole clarifies. Which is kind of unnecessary, because Jay already understood. But still.

“I’m not adorable!” Jay growls, folding his arms over his chest.

“You kind of are.” Cole mumbles, clearly not expecting the human to hear him.

“Excuse you, I am manly and intimidating!” Jay stamps his foot on the ground as he glares. 

“... you’re barely five foot, if that.” The vampire smirks. He places his arm on Jay’s head like he’s an armrest, slowly adding more weight.

The young adult shoves him off of him. “This is irrelevant!” He snaps. 

“It’s past your bedtime, Bluejay.” Cole smiles. He picks Jay up once more, much to the human’s chagrin, and starts walking him back into the bedroom.

“Don’t call me that. Kai calls me that.” He grumbles, resigning himself to his fate.

“I’ll just have to come up with my own nickname.” The human can practically  **_hear_ ** the smirk in his voice.

“Please don’t.”

The vampire sets Jay down on the bed, and starts trying to tuck him under the covers.

“I’m not a child!” The young adult protests, attempting to push Cole away. But the immortal isn’t having it, and manages to manhandle him into the bed.   
  


“I didn’t say you were.” He replies, pulling up the blankets.

“Then stop treating me like one!” Jay isn’t pouting. He’s not, okay?! 

Cole doesn’t answer, but he turns to leave the room.

Jay knows what’s going to happen if he’s left alone in here. He doesn’t want to have to remember. He can’t handle it. He won’t be able to handle it again. It’s bad enough that it happened once, he shouldn’t have to relive it!   
  


Panicking, the human grabs Cole by the sleeve, trying to pull him back over. He fails miserably, but it at least makes the vampire pause. 

“Something wrong? You want a bedtime story?”

Jay doesn’t have it in him to snark back. He just tightens his grip on the immortal, fighting the urge to break into tears. “Please don’t go.”

“What?” Cole questions, though he does make his way back over to the bed, sitting down beside Jay.

“I don’t want to be alone.” The human whispers, so quietly that if Cole didn’t have advanced hearing, he most likely wouldn’t have heard.

The immortal looks away. “Look, I-”

“Cole, please.” Jay begs. He can’t handle facing the images again. He can’t handle the memories.

“... yeah, okay.” Cole relents. “Scooch over.”

Relieved, the human moves over to the side. Cautiously, and watching Jay for any reaction, Cole gets under the covers with him.   
  


It dawns on Jay that maybe this is uncomfortable for Cole. Did Jay make it all about him and pressure the vampire into joining him?

Although he feels guilty, he doesn’t speak up on the matter. He doesn’t want Cole to leave. He doesn’t want to be stuck with his thoughts again.

His fears are put to rest when Cole wraps his arms around him, pulling the human close. His voice is a quiet rumble when he asks, “Is this okay?”

Jay nods, only half paying attention. He’s tired. He’s really, really tired. How long has he been awake today? Sure, he took a three-hour nap earlier, but he also stayed up  **_way_ ** past nine, when he usually goes to sleep.

He’s too tired to do the math. He closes his eyes. For what might be the first time since he came here, he actually feels safe.

The human falls asleep in the warmth of Cole’s arms.

He doesn’t have any nightmares.

  
  



	16. Electric

The world around him is fuzzy. What happened?

Blinking, Jay notices that he’s in the guest room. The memories of the day come rushing back, and the human winces as they go over what had happened that morning. Scanning the room, he takes in all the details. Even so, it takes him a few moments to realize that the soft rumbling noise is Cole’s snoring.

Wait. He fell asleep with Cole.

**_He fell asleep with Cole_ ** .

Fuck.

The human attempts to pry himself out of the immortal’s grip, but Cole doesn’t budge. If anything, he holds Jay tighter.

“Umph.” Jay grunts. For the second time that morning, he tries to get himself out of the hug, but his attempts prove worthless.

Does Cole have super strength or something? There’s no way any human is that strong. Is it a vampiric trait?

“Cole.” Jay prompts, once again attempting to free himself. The best way to get out is most likely to wake the vampire up.

Unfortunately, the immortal only murmurs something in his sleep, not even appearing to register Jay.

“Cole, wake up.”    
  
Once again, no response.

Fine. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

Jay closes his eyes, taking a deep breath. He’s never really done this before, but how hard could it be?

He calls upon the power inside him, the electricity that is always there, pulsing under his skin and through his veins. 

Then he shocks Cole with as much power as he can muster.

In less than a second, Jay is picked up from his spot on the bed and thrown onto the floor, trapped in some kind of judo move.

Cole growls, but the malice quickly fades as he registers who he has pinned. “Jay?”

“Your hair is really poofy now.” The human comments. And well, he’s not wrong. The frizzy hair is a mess, and Jay has to fight back a giggle.

“What was that for?!” Cole complains, releasing Jay from his hold and helping him back to his feet.

“You were being a boa constrictor and I wanted out.” The young adult over-dramatically brushes himself off from being tackled.

“Please don’t compare me to a snake.” Cole rolls his eyes, but his smile tells Jay that he’s finding the situation amusing.

There’s a knock on the door, startling Jay. But judging from Cole’s sigh, he already knew that someone was outside.

The young adult makes his way around Cole to the door, quickly pulling it open. “Uh, hi?”

Kai, dressed in his gi, stands in front of him. “Cole’s missing.”

The vampire walks up behind Jay, giving Kai a wave. “Right here. You need me for something?”

The demon blinks, looking between the two of them. He looks hopelessly confused. “You slept with Cole?”

The hurt in his tone is evident, but Jay can’t bring himself to care about the Red Ninja’s emotions. And while he knows exactly what he’s asking, pretending he doesn’t wouldn’t quite be lying… 

“Yeah, I did.” Jay smiles. He did sleep with Cole, just not in the way Kai is most likely thinking. And while the demon may get upset over this, Jay technically isn’t breaking any rules.

Cole glances at Jay in surprise, but doesn’t rat him out. Instead, he turns to Kai. “Something wrong?”

“No, no, everything’s cool.” Kai speaks through gritted teeth. “I just wanted to grab Cole for sparring, was wondering where he was.”

“Oh, we should start teaching Jay about his elemental powers. He doesn’t quite have a handle on them yet.” Cole gives the human a pointed look.

“Excuse you, I did that on purpose.” Jay gives him a playful shove.

“You nearly fried me!” Cole protests. 

Kai clears his throat. “Sparring room?”

“Yeah, yeah, let me go get my uniform, didn’t bring it with me.” The vampire pushes past Kai, most likely going to his room.

The demon lets Cole walk away without comment, but as soon as he’s out of sight, he turns back to Jay. “Why?”

“Huh?” Jay tilts his head, despite knowing exactly what Kai is talking about. Maybe pretending to be with Cole was a bad idea.

“What’s so good about him?” Kai prompts, crossing his arms. He looks as though he can’t believe someone would choose Cole over him.

“... do I have to answer that?” Jay glances to the side. Maybe he can get away with just listing qualities he likes in Cole as a friend.   
  


“Yeah, you do.” Kai glares.

“He’s nice, for one thing.” The young adult begins.

“I can be nice.” The demon says it more to himself than to Jay, so the human moves past it.

“He actually cares about my well-being.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kai looks personally offended by the statement.   
  


“He realized he upset me, and every time he delivers a well-thought out apology that actually means something.” Jay is quick to explain. He doesn’t need Kai getting more upset at him. Well, he’s already going to be upset when he realizes that Jay is omitting important information

Kai gapes at him. “I-”

“And he’s a good guy.” Jay finishes.

“We’re literally all trying to turn Ninjago evil.”

“Don’t remind me.” The human sighs, looking away. Yet another thing he doesn’t want to think about. This place seems to be full of them.

“How is he a good guy?” Kai demands.

“When I said ‘good guy’, I meant that he was a good person.” Jay clarifies.

“My point stands.” The demon glowers.

“I don’t know what to tell you, Kai. I just prefer him.”

“I see.” Kai mutters. He steps closer to Jay, and holds him against the doorframe, pinning him there. He leans in close, until they’re practically sharing the same air.

“Wha- what are you doing?” Jay attempts to put more room between them, but Kai doesn’t let him get an inch. If anything, he just moves in closer.

“I just want to remind you of something.” The demon breathes.

“An- and what’s, what’s that?” The young adult swallows, trying not to let his fear show. Memories flash through his mind. This was a bad idea, a horrible, **_horrible_** idea, how did he think that this would be okay?

“You belong to  **_me_ ** , not Cole.  **_I_ ** was the one you made the deal with. Now, I don’t care if you’re with him. Really, I don’t. Just know that at the end of the day, no matter what you did with him, you’re  **_mine_ ** .” Kai growls, leaning in even closer.

It’s then that Jay realizes that Kai isn’t going to try anything. He’s just trying to assert his dominance over the human. The tension that had flooded his body fades away.

Well, two can play this game. Without change in expression, he replies, “This is exactly why I prefer Cole.” 

“What?” Kai demands with a growl, getting even more into Jay’s face.

The human forces himself to stay relaxed. “He doesn’t do things like this.”

It’s then that Cole walks back into sight. He’s clearly rushing, most likely having heard some of the conversation, but he’s also attempting to look like he’s being casual.

Just like Jay, he has no idea what he’s doing. It’s kinda nice to not be the only one.

“Kai, what-”

The demon releases Jay and steps away. “Nothing.”

“What were you doing to him?” Cole storms up to the two, glancing between them. He pulls Jay close to him protectively. It’s a sweet gesture, but the human wasn’t really in any danger. He’ll mention what happened later.

“I’m sorry, who’s the one in charge here?” Kai snaps.

“You’re pulling rank?” Cole looks bewildered by this turn of events. He stares at the demon in shock. “You never pull rank.”   
  


“I just did, didn’t I?” The Red Ninja turns and starts making his way back to where Jay thinks the exercise room is. He’s only ever been there once.

Cole blinks, still looking stunned. “Kai-”

“Sparring room. Five minutes. I’ll see you there.” And with that, the demon goes back down the hallway and out of sight.

The other two Ninja stand there, a little bit dumbfounded. It takes Cole a few minutes to speak, but when he turns to Jay, the human can only expect the worst.

But to his surprise, Cole doesn’t look angry. He looks concerned. “Are you okay?”

Jay blinks. “I, uh, yeah. Everything- Everything’s cool. I’m good. Wasn’t scared or any-”

“You’re lucky Kai can’t hear you, because while I’ll let the lie slide, he wouldn’t.” 

Jay winces. “I- yeah, okay. But I’m okay. Stressed, but okay.”

Cole grabs his shoulders and slams him against the wall.“Good. Now  **_what the Hell were you thinking_ ** ?!” Okay,  **_now_ ** he looks angry.   
  


“I wasn’t.” Jay admits. And as uncomfortable as it is to be slammed against the wall, at least he knows that Cole won’t actually hurt him.

“You’re insane. We need to go tell him.” The vampire lets go of Jay and steps back, running a hand through his hair.

“And make him think I lied? No way!” Jay looks up at Cole, panicked. He can’t let the vampire tattle on him again, Kai’s already angry!

The immortal looks just as stressed as Jay feels. “We can’t let him think that we-”

“Why not?” The human interjects. It’s not that big of a problem, right?

“Did you see how he was acting?! He’s not going to drop this.” Cole points out. He looks almost…  **_scared_ ** .

“He’ll be upset if we tell him now!” Jay argues, fighting back guilt. He made a mistake, yes, but owning up to it won’t fix it.

“He’ll be even more upset if he finds out himself!” The vampire snaps. “We need to tell him.”

“Cole, please don’t do this again.” Jay begs. He can’t tell Kai, he just  **_can’t_ ** . After the way the demon was acting, it might as well be a death sentence!

“I wouldn’t have to keep doing it if you didn’t keep pulling things like this!” Cole shoots back, crossing his arms.

“I’m sorry, okay?! I didn’t think he’d react like this.” The human yells.

A look of disbelief crosses the vampire’s face. “How did you think he was going to react?! He’s  **_Kai_ ** .”

“I don’t know, not like this!” Jay knows it’s not a good argument, but it’s the only one he has at the moment. Unless he’s going to start rehashing old arguments, there’s not a lot he can say.

The two stand there for a moment as they glare, both refusing to back down. Cole’s dark eyes bore into Jay’s, and the human fights back a shudder as he stares right back.   
  


After what feels like hours, the vampire looks away, signaling the end of their standoff. “Look, we need to go to the training room. If we’re late right now, he’ll throw a tantrum.”

Jay doesn’t need to ask who ‘he’ is. But he’s not sure that Cole isn’t going to tattle on him. He doesn’t have very many options, so he’s going to go with the only one that even has the slightest chance of working.

“Promise me.”

“What?” Cole stares at him in disbelief. A million expressions cross his face, ranging from outrage to fear.

“Promise me you won’t tell him.”

Cole’s expression softens somewhat. He curls in on himself a little, and the young adult can’t help but notice how broken he looks. It’s then that he realizes that this isn’t the norm for Cole. Things were different before Jay showed up. From the way the vampire talks about him, Kai wasn’t always this explosive. Something changed once he met Jay, and it’s definitely not a good thing. Something broke when the human stepped inside of the mansion. The fragile trust and comradery that must have existed before shattered.

In short, Jay screwed things up. Again.

“Okay.”

“Huh?” The human is jolted from his train of thought. Did he miss something? Was Cole talking and Jay was just too caught up in his thoughts to hear him?

“I promise.” Cole sighs. “Now come on. If we hurry we can make it before the five minutes are up.”

Wordlessly, Jay lets himself be led back through the maze of hallways to the exercise room. He’s tense, but not as much as he probably should be.

Cole promised. He doesn’t seem like the kind of guy to break his word, either. Jay’ll be safe. 

The two step into the exercise room, and the young adult is flooded with memories from the last time he was here. The first time Kai tried something.

_ ‘ “But there was more to it than that, wasn’t there? Tell me there was more to it.” ‘ _

He shudders, pressing himself closer to Cole. Nothing is going to happen this time. The vampire said he’d keep Jay safe. He said he’d protect him.

The human is drawn from his thoughts by movement, a red blur darting around the room as it slams into wooden figures. It takes a second for Jay to recognize that it’s Kai.

He moves with such skill and agility, dodging arrows that fly from the walls as he takes down target after target. His suit smolders, and the smell of smoke fills the air. The skill that he displays is awe-inspiring, in the original meaning of the word.

After about another minute of this, the demon arcs his body and makes a landing in front of them, falling into a roll and springing up onto his feet. He flips off his mask, and his face is adorned with a cocky smirk.

The fumes of the fire that cover his suit flicker out.

“See something you like?”

The young adult is tempted to pointedly stare at Cole and agree, but that would be dangerous. Kai’s already upset.

So Jay just glances away without comment. Better to remain silent than risk making the demon angry. 

There’s an awkward silence. The young adult isn’t allowed to lie, so it’s not like he can agree. He really  **_doesn’t_ ** like Kai.

The demon’s expression darkens at the lack of a reply. 

And somehow, Jay managed to piss him off anyway! Just his luck. Is there anyway to  **_not_ ** make him mad? It seems like almost anything can set him off.

Cole clears his throat, shattering the tense silence. “So. Are we still going to spar?”

Kai nods stiffly. “Hand to hand, no Spinjitzu- but we can use powers. Jay’ll play referee.”

Jay’s eyes widen. Oh. Oh no. He doesn’t want to make decisions like that. If he’s forced to be honest, but Kai loses, then he’ll get upset. And then Jay’ll get in trouble. “Uh, I’m not sure that’s a good idea…”

Kai waves him off. “Relax, it’s easy. It ends when someone surrenders, somebody is in a position to do a killing move, or one of us can’t get back up. All you have to do is stop any cheating.”

“Cheating?” Jay looks up nervously. How would someone even cheat at this? The only rule he’s mentioned is no Spinjitzu- whatever Spinjitzu even is. How would he be able to tell if they’re using it if he doesn’t know what it is?!

“Look, just make sure we don’t kill each other.” Kai sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. He looks like he’s starting to get exasperated, but Jay isn’t done with his questions.

“You really think I could stop you? Either of you?”

Kai runs a hand through his hair. “Just watch, then.” He speaks through gritted teeth as he closes his eyes.

“ **_That_ ** I can do.” The young adult gives a nervous smile. Hopefully he hasn’t pissed off the demon too much… 

“Anything else, or can we get started?” Cole glances between the two of them, concern evident on his face.

“That should be it.” Kai agrees. He turns to Jay. “Stay off the mats.”

The Blue Ninja quickly nods. He doesn’t want to get caught in the crossfire. The two of them are some of the most powerful beings to exist, and getting between them could spell out certain death.

The two Ninja take their places on opposite sides of the training room, both staring the other down with malice in their eyes. Even though they described it as sparring, Jay has a feeling that there’s something more here. They clearly haven’t been getting along, and they’re trying to get out the tension between them.

“Ready?” The demon prompts. His voice is low and dark, tinged with unmistakable hostility. The rumble sends shivers down Jay’s spine, and he glances to Cole, wondering how the vampire is taking it.

The Black Ninja seems largely unaffected by the tone of voice. “Ready.” He confirms, his words spoken in the same dark growl.

For a moment, nothing happens. The two just stand there, staring each other down. The tense atmosphere is suffocating, and the young adult bites his lip, wondering exactly how this is going to go down.

Kai is the first one to move. He’s no more than a red blur as he lunges at Cole, but the vampire is ready. He blocks the attack with a wall of earth, turning near invisible in it’s shadow. The young adult squints, trying to spot him, but by the time he realizes where he is, he’s already landed a hit on Kai and faded back into the shadows.

The demon is clearly not happy with this. “Always gotta sneak around, don’t you. Too scared to fight me head on?” He taunts, fire flickering over his suit as he studies the area around him.

“Yeah, scared of how badly you’ll get hurt!” Cole snaps back, his voice emanating from the ceiling. Both the Red and the Blue Ninja look up, but by the time they’ve located the source, Cole has already vacated the area. 

Kai growls in anger, shooting flames at the ceiling despite the lack of the vampire. “Come out and fight me!” The red-hot flames scorch the room around them, and Jay winces at the heat. He feels like he’s moments away from combusting himself. 

A blast of rocks and dirt crash into Kai, sending him sprawling onto the floor. Jay whips his head around to see Cole adorned with a smirk as dust and small stones gather around him, floating in the air. “You couldn’t handle fighting me head on.” He snarks.

His jab is answered by a wave of fire that sends him skidding back, his suit lighting ablaze. 

“Ah, fu-” He’s cut off by Kai tackling him, forcing him down to the ground. The Red Ninja presses one hand to Cole’s shoulder to hold him down, and his other sparks with flames as it moves centimeters from the vampire’s face, the fire illuminating his surprise. 

“I could burn the flesh off of your skull. Tap out.” Kai snarls. And from his tone of voice, it’s not an idle threat.

Jay swallows. Cole needs to back down. But from what he knows of the vampire, it’s highly unlikely that he will.

“Ninja never quit!” He shoots back, wrenching Kai off of him. Jay watches in horror as the flames start to leave behind burns. But Cole drops into a roll, extinguishing the fires. But by the time they're gone, Kai has regained his footing and is charging him again.

Huh. Maybe the vampire has this more under control than he thought.

“I’m a Ninja too, you know!” Kai snaps as he attempts to trap Cole in a chokehold. 

But the vampire slips free of his grasp, twisting as he grabs the demon by the shoulders. With a quick sweep of his legs, he knocks the Red Ninja to the ground, still holding on. From there, he locks  **_Kai_ ** into a headlock. “A pretty shitty one, if you ask me.”

Kai tenses, his entire body lighting ablaze once more, forcing Cole to let go and back off. The rage burning in his now amber eyes is no joke, and Jay flinches at the expression. “ **_I’m sorry, what did you just say?_ ** ”

Cole starts backing away, putting his hands up in a symbol of surrender. “I take it back-”

“No, no, I think it’s a little bit too late for that.” Kai laughs after the statement, but it quickly fades under the sea of madness. Is he angry or insane? Jay honestly can’t tell.

The vampire gives a hesitant, fearful smile. “Uh. Double tap?”

“No. You don’t get to tap out just yet.” The demon growls, stalking closer to Cole.

“... this is the part where you beat the Hell out of me and I don’t stop you because that’ll make you more upset, isn’t it.”

“Yep!” Kai gives a fake, overly-cheery smile.

Cole just sighs. “Let’s get this over with.”

Before he can think about what he’s doing, Jay runs over onto the mats, getting in between the two immortals. “How about we  **_don’t_ ** do that?”

“Jay, step aside.” Kai glares, his body still wreathed in flames.

The young adult swallows back his fear and forces himself to remain put. He’s not going to just stand there and let his friend be subjected to Kai. “No.”

“Walker, I’m not messing around.” The demon growls.

“Neither am I!” Jay snaps back, crossing his arms.

“Jay, it’s fine. I can take it.” Cole takes a step closer, but Jay isn’t fooled by the show of bravado. The vampire is  **_terrified_ ** . And the human isn’t going to let his friend get hurt.

He ignores the vampire’s lie, choosing instead to focus on Kai. “I’m not going to let you hurt him.”

“Why do you care so much about him?!” Kai sounds angry, but underneath there’s a note of hurt. He seems almost offended by Jay’s interference. The fires around him dim somewhat, and it’s easy to see how pained the demon is.

“He’s my friend.” The young adult defends.

“Oh really? I thought the two of you were more than that!” The Red Ninja snaps. The fires light back up, burning even more intensely than before.   
  


Ohhhhh.  **_That’s_ ** what this is about. Kai’s jealous.

Well, time to make things right.

“We didn’t sleep together.” Jay explains, fighting to keep the tension out of his voice. He needs to stay calm for this.

“What?” Kai freezes. The fires dim. The orange in his eyes fades a little, and they come closer to their normal color.

“Well, we did, but not in the way that you’re thinking.” The human gives a sheepish smile.

“I thought we weren’t going to tell him?” Cole questions. The young adult can hear the frown in his voice, despite not facing him.

“That was before he decided he was going to tear your throat out.” Jay sighs. “Now please be quiet so I can explain how much of an idiot I am.”

“You’re not an idiot.” The two immortals mutter in unison. They immediately start glaring at each other when they realize the other has said the same thing.

“Yes I am. Now back to the point. Cole and I slept in the same bed, yes, but that’s it. We didn’t fool around. We just slept.” Jay explains, carefully watching Kai for his reaction.

The demon swallows. “You- you guys didn’t-”

“No. I thought it would be funny to make you think we had. I didn’t realize that it would set you off like this.” Jay forces himself to stay calm. Or at least make his voice stay steady.

“So you don’t prefer Cole?” Kai looks hopeful, and the fires flicker out along with the last traces of amber in his eyes.

Jay freezes. He’s not allowed to lie. But he can’t exactly tell him the truth. He  **_definitely_ ** prefers Cole over Kai. One of them is his friend, the other one not so much. But if he tells that to the demon, he’s going to flip out again.

As it turns out, Jay’s silence is enough of an answer. Kai looks hurt, but thankfully not angry. He looks away from the two of them.

“I’m sorry.” The human offers weakly. He’s not entirely sure why he’s apologizing, but it seems like the best way to avoid Kai’s wrath.

The demon looks past Jay, over to Cole. “I’m sorry for flipping out on you.” He mutters.

“Wha- what?” The vampire stares in shock, like he can’t believe what he’s hearing.    
  


“Don’t make me repeat myself.” Kai grumbles. And with that, he turns around and leaves the room, back out into the maze of hallways.

There’s a beat of silence as the two of them stand there with bated breath, waiting for it to all be fake and Kai to come back in as furious as ever.

But he doesn’t. 

Jay falls to his knees, breathing picking up as he realizes what he’s done, what he did. He stood up to Kai. He stood up to Kai!

Cole runs over to him, clearly concerned. “Are you okay?!” He demands.

The human nods. There’s a rush of adrenaline, a swirl of both fear and excitement. “I stood up to Kai!”

“Yes, which has got to be the stupidest thing you’ve ever done.” The vampire helps Jay to his feet, the young adult still giddy with his enthusiasm.

“I can’t believe I just did that. Scratch that, I can’t believe he  **_listened_ ** . I thought he was going to kill me over this!”

“He wouldn’t kill you. Hurt you, maybe, but kill? No.” Cole reassures him, despite Jay not needing any reassurance.

“Huh?” The young adult tilts his head.

“He likes you too much to do that.” The vampire elaborates, starting to make his way to the door. Jay quickly follows.

“Why?” The human prompts curiously.

“Hmm?” 

“Why does he like me so much? He fought Zane about the Dark Matter thing, but he was right. The only reason Kai brought me here was because he thought I was cute. So why does he care so much?” The two walk out into the hallways. Jay’s not really sure where they’re going, so he just follows along.

“You expect me to understand him?” Cole laughs. 

“...fair point.” Jay concedes, frowning. “Maybe I should ask him.”

Cole’s humor fades. “Maybe you  **_shouldn’t_ ** .” 

But before Jay can think of a response, Green walks around the corner, pausing as he notices the two of them. 

Cole stops in his tracks, and the human follows suit. The three of them stand there awkwardly, not sure what to do.

It’s Green who breaks the silence. “Given that you’re not attacking me, I guess I can assume that someone told you.”

“We’re calling you ‘Green’, right?” Cole questions.

Green groans. “I’m still  **_Morro_ ** , I’m just in a different body!” He protests.

“Sorry.” Jay says meekly. He didn’t mean to accidentally re-name the ghost, he just found it confusing that he was in Lloyd’s body.

Green sighs. “Whatever.” He makes his way around the two Ninja and then continues on his way down the hall.

Cole glances at Jay and shrugs. The human isn’t entirely sure why, but hopefully it’s not important.

The two Ninja go back to walking through the network of hallways, Jay still having no idea where the Hell they are or where they’re going.

After a few more minutes of walking in complete silence, the young adult recognizes where they are. 

Cole steps into the kitchen, glancing around. “Huh. I’d have sworn that Zane’d be making breakfast by now.” 

“Maybe he’s busy.” Jay offers.

The vampire makes his way over to the refrigerator. He opens it, flashing Jay a grin. “Wherever he is, if he’s not here, maybe I can-”

“You can’t have cake for breakfast, Cole.” Zane’s voice rings out. Jay glances around in surprise, trying to locate him.

“What the actual fuck are you doing in the fridge?” The Black Ninja questions, looking horrified.

And lo and behold, Zane steps out of the refrigerator. “I was meditating.” He explains.

“So you went inside the refrigerator?” Cole looks just as confused as Jay feels. 

“Yes.”

“What the fuck.” Cole whispers. He glances at Jay, as though he’s trying to confirm that this is really happening.

Jay just shrugs, bewildered. 

“It’s very calming. You should try it sometime.” The Nindroid recommends, closing the door to the fridge.

“Yeah, no thanks.” Cole shudders. “I’d rather not get hypothermia.”

“I don’t believe you are capable of getting hypothermia.” Zane frowns. His gaze looks far away, as though he’s deep in thought.

“I’d rather not find out.” The vampire decides. “Can we have breakfast now?”

Zane smiles. “Yes, I’ll get started on breakfast. But you should know by now that you cannot eat cake as a replacement for a meal.”

“Who says I was going for the cake?” Cole flashes a smile.

Jay glances between the two of them. So Zane just randomly goes into the fridge to meditate? Doesn’t he get cold? Ooh, maybe it’s related to his ice powers-

“You always go for the cake.” The Nindroid rolls his eyes, walking over to the pantry.

“You got me there.” 

“Now get out of the kitchen. You’re not allowed in here while I cook.” Zane starts gathering ingredients from the pantry, setting them on the counter.

“Yeah, yeah, we’re leaving.” Cole shakes his head with a smile. He turns to Jay. “Just another day in the life of a Ninja.”

And with that, he leads Jay back to the game room. 

The human follows, still confused. Sure, the ice powers would explain how he doesn’t get cold, but why- Oh! Maybe they make him more comfortable in cold environments than the average human- or Nindroid- would be. Hmm, if that’s the case, it might mean that Kai would be more comfortable in warm places! It could also explain why he seems unaffected by the heat of his flames. But what would that mean for Cole? Earth isn’t a temperature-related element, so maybe it wouldn’t do anything. But maybe he has some other- Wait a minute, his super strength! Of course! But when applied to Jay, what would his special elemental-based ability be? Well, what are the most notable things about lightning? Light, for one, but also-

Cole waves a hand in front of his face, jolting him from his thoughts. “Ninjago to Jay, Ninjago to Jay, do you read me?”

Jay pushes the vampire’s hand away. “Yeah, I can hear you.”

“You zoned out there.” The vampire notes, sitting down on the couch.

“Sorry. I was just thinking.” The young adult walks over and sits beside him, glancing back over in the direction of the kitchen.

“About what?” Cole prompts.

Jay pauses a moment, debating exactly what he wants to say. Oh well, it’s not like telling him would hurt anything. “Elemental powers.” 

Cole smiles sharply. Honestly, it kinda reminds the young adult of Kai’s menacing grin. “We could practice training yours today.”

“Yeah! Speaking of training, I have a question.” Jay grins. Testing out his elemental powers sounds  **_amazing_ ** , especially if it’ll let him defend himself better.

“Shoot.”

“What’s Spinjitzu?” The young adult leans forward. Whatever it is, it seems kind of important. And even if it wasn’t, Jay hates not knowing things.

“A Ninja’s signature move. You can’t really call yourself a Ninja until you can pull it off.” Cole explains.

Jay pauses, absorbing this information. “So I’m not really the Blue Ninja?”

Cole blinks, his smile fading. “Uh…”

The young adult frowns. “But what  **_is_ ** it? Is it something you do with your powers? Is it a form of attack? Is it passive or active? How do you-”

“You remember the tornado-thing that Zane did back on the rooftop?” The vampire interrupts.

“Yeah?” Jay tilts his head.

“That’s Spinjitzu. It’s a series of moves that you do in quick succession. When done right, its both a powerful offensive weapon, and a really good defensive shield. Once you start, almost nothing can get in your path without getting seriously messed up.” Cole explains.

Jay stares, a grin slowly crossing his face. “ **_Woah_ ** .” He whispers to himself.

“It takes months of training, but if you have elemental powers, you should be able to do Spinjitzu.” Cole continues. “Once you have a better handle on your powers, I can start teaching you the moves.”

“When can I start working on my powers?” Jay asks eagerly. He’s practically falling out of his seat.

“Well, I’ll have to ask Kai. He might want to help.” Cole winces somewhat, watching Jay carefully.

Jay’s excitement fades a little. “Heh. Right. Kai.”

“Hey, don’t worry. It’s just training. He won’t hurt you.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know that. I, uh- we-should-go-see-if-Zane’s-done-cooking.” The words come out in a rush as he darts back over to the kitchen. He’s not feeling up to that conversation.

“Jay, wait-” Cole calls after him, but the young adult is already dashing down the halls. 

He makes it to the kitchen in a matter of seconds. Zane looks up in surprise, and the human spots Kai at the dining table, talking to Green.

There’s really no getting away from the demon, is there?

“Jay, is everything alright?” Zane questions.

“Yep! Just running away from my problems, the usual.” The young adult flashes an uncomfortable, tense smile.

Kai gets up and sticks his head into the kitchen. “You don’t look okay. What’s wrong?”

“I mean, what  **_isn’t_ ** wrong?” Jay laughs. “My life is such a mess that I can’t even tell anymore.”

“Jay, seriously. What’s got you so worked up?” Kai asks. And honestly, the young adult is almost offended by the level of concern he’s showing.

“I don’t want to talk about it. That’s why I’m running away.” Jay snaps.

The demon grits his teeth, crossing his arms. “Who do I need to kill?”

“No one! Really, I just need some space, that’s all.” Jay forces a smile as he starts backing away.

Green sighs, putting his head in his hands. He doesn’t get up from the table. “Jay?”

“Yeah?” The human acknowledges the possessed angel, but he keeps most of his focus on Kai.

“If we stop asking about it, will you calm down?” Green questions. He sounds somewhat exasperated by the confrontation.

“Probably.” The young adult admits. The whole issue is that he’s avoiding talking about something, so if no one asks, it’s likely that he’ll be able to relax.

“Good. Now come sit down and ramble about something.” The possessed angel inspects his nails, his face draining of emotion. Within moments, he goes from agitated to bored. 

It’s actually kind of scary.

“I- Okay, yeah. I can do that.” Jay agrees. He makes his way past Kai to the dining table and sits down across from Green.

Kai stares at the possessed angel in disbelief. Wordlessly, he makes his way over and sits next to Jay.

The Blue Ninja suppresses a groan. Of course Kai sits right next to him. Why wouldn’t he? It’s not like Jay’s upset at him anything.

Hint hint, that was sarcasm.

Zane turns and goes back to his cooking, and Green gestures for Jay to start talking. But before he can say anything, an out-of-breath Cole runs into the room.

“How did you get here so fast?” The vampire pants.

“I ran.” Jay shrugs. He doesn’t miss the glare Kai sends in the vampire’s direction, but he pretends he does.

“So did I!” The Black Ninja objects.

Kai gets up from his seat and walks over to the vampire with a tight smile.“Cole, why is Jay so upset?”

“We agreed not to talk about this!” The human protests. “Wasn’t I supposed to ramble about something?”

The Red and Black Ninja have a momentary standoff. But it quickly dissolves, and Kai turns and goes back to his seat. “Yeah. Go ahead, monologue about that comic series.”

So Jay launches into a detailed explanation about Fritz Donnegan and the first plot arc in the Starfarer series, occasionally adding details about how it compares to the movies. Green seems relatively uninterested, and Cole looks hopelessly confused. From what the young adult can tell, Kai isn’t even listening, he’s just staring at Jay with a smile on his face.   
  


But he continues on with his monologue. He’s never actually got to rant to people about this before. He’s shared a little with his parents, but he’s never actually gone into detail like this.

Minutes pass, but he pays no attention to the time. He’s so focused on his storytelling that he barely even notices when Zane starts bringing out food. 

At that point, he’s pretty sure he’s lost Cole as an audience member, the vampire too enraptured by the meal to even realize someone is talking. But that’s okay, he probably wasn’t paying much attention in the first place.

So Jay continues his speech about the series. To his surprise, Zane actually seems to be listening to what he’s saying, occasionally asking questions and prompting him to continue.

He’s so fixated on his lecture that he doesn’t pay much note to the plate of food that Kai sets in front of him. He can get leftovers or something later, right now he’s going to  **_talk_ ** .

And talk he does. At some point, Green got up and left, but the human pays it no mind. By then, Jay has made it onto the second main arc of the series, but he doesn’t stop there.

He makes it halfway through the second arc before Kai holds up his hand in a request for silence.

“As cute as it is when you ramble, you need to eat something.” The demon gestures to the plate in front of him. 

“I’m not cute.” Jay grumbles, but he picks up his fork and starts eating. “I’m manly and intimidating.”

“Very manly and intimidating.” Kai agrees with a straight face.

Cole looks like he’s fighting back a laugh, and Jay narrows his eyes at the demon. But Kai just gives him an innocent expression.

With a sigh, the human goes back to his plate. He’s not going to win this one. “Food’s really good.” He mumbles.

Zane smiles. “I’ve been told that I’m very good at cooking.” He agrees.

There’s a beat of silence.

“So, Jay and I were thinking about working on his elemental powers.” Cole says casually.

Jay tenses. Heck.

“I’ve been meaning to see how skilled he is at that.” Kai agrees. “We can start after we’re done eating.”

The young adult gives Cole a betrayed glare, which the vampire brushes off.

Jay just about had a panic attack over this, and the immortal just turns around and casually mentions it?! Why would he do this?   
  


The human purposefully drags out eating the rest of his food. He’s  **_not_ ** looking forward to however Kai plans to teach him about his powers.

It’s probably going to end up with him being dragged on the floor. Either that or pinned against a wall.

But all too soon, his plate is cleared. He sits there nervously, waiting for one of them to drag him off to train.

It’s Kai who makes the first move. He gets up from his seat, doing a quick stretch. “Ready?” Although it’s the same phrase that he used before the fight, it’s said in a completely different way.

Jay gives a hesitant nod. “I, uh, yeah?”

“Great!” Kai ignores Jay’s reluctance. “This way.”

So Jay follows the Red Ninja down the halls, Cole trailing the both of them. With every step he grows more and more apprehensive.

“So how much do you know about your powers?” Kai asks.

“Enough to give a pretty good shock.” Cole grumbles. “He just about fried me.”

Kai rolls his eyes. “Wasn’t asking  **_you_ ** , boulder brains.” Despite the annoyed words, the demon’s tone is playful, and the laid back attitude seems to relax Cole.

It does absolutely nothing to help with Jay’s anxiety. The Red Ninja’s emotions turn on a dime, flickering between anything from anger to excitement in just moments.

It’s even scarier than Morro’s ability to hide behind apathy.

“I, uh, well- I can give small electric shocks…” Jay mumbles.

“ **_Small_ ** ?” Cole protests. “You zapped me half to death!” He waves his arms around for emphasis.

“Really? A small shock is all it takes to bring down the mighty Black Ninja?” Kai laughs. 

Cole rolls his eyes, giving the demon a playful shove. “Don’t go getting any ideas, Hotshot.”

Jay looks between the two of them. This is… different. Is this what it was like before? Is this what  **_Kai_ ** was like before? 

… what changed? Well Jay, obviously, but there must’ve been something else, something before him. After all, Kai was like this when the human met him.

So what gives? What happened to Kai? Who was he before, and why is he like this now? Is it really Jay’s fault, or is there something more at play here?

And if Kai was like this before, what were his motives for trying to turn Ninjago evil? The Overlord told him to, sure, but knowing Kai, that likely wouldn’t have been enough. The Red Ninja doesn’t do what he’s told.

Jay doesn’t like not knowing things. He doesn’t like being kept in the dark. He’s going to find out what’s going on if it’s the last thing he does, which it very well may be.

Kai waves a hand in front of Jay’s face. “Bluejay, you still in there?”

The human fights back a snappy comment at the nickname. Why does Kai insist on calling him that? “Yeah, still here.” He bites out.

“Everything okay?” The demon asks. The concern is almost insulting, considering everything he’s done.

“Don’t like nicknames.” Jay grumbles, crossing his arms.

“Well then it sucks to be you.” Kai answers cheerfully. “C’mon, lets go test out your powers.”

Jay tenses. Right. That's a thing that they’re doing. He was so focused on trying to unravel what’s wrong with Kai that he completely forgot.

The Red Ninja leads the two into the training room. He takes Jay onto the mats, turning to face him. “Zap me with everything you’ve got.”

“Wha- what?” Jay blinks. “I- I don’t think I can do that-”

“I can take it.” Kai proclaims with a smile.

Jay’s already gone full-out once today. It probably won’t be good for him to do it again. Well, he doesn’t know very much about elemental powers, but it seems like a bad idea. He once again tries to explain himself to Kai. “I know, it’s just-”

“I won’t get mad, I’m literally asking for it.” The demon points out, not letting the human actually get to his point.

The young adult winces. “But-”

“Just shock me already.” Kai interrupts.

Jay sighs. “Alright…” He braces his feet against the ground, and grabs Kai’s wrist. He closes his eyes and concentrates on the flow of power inside him, on the thrumming in his veins. The static rushes through him, and he takes a deep breath, doing his best to call on it, to bring it to the surface.

Then he takes as much of it as he can muster and shoves it at Kai, forcing every single fragment of the energy at the demon.

He can just make out a voice, but he’s not listening. He can only hear the buzzing of electricity, the flood of power that swirls in and around him. The world has faded away, and there’s nothing left but him. Nothing left but him and the power that surges through his veins. The high voltage that he’s producing flows through his body in the form of forceful static. He smiles as the energy starts to build, to grow in intensity. It almost starts to hurt, but he could care less about the pain. Its nothing when compared to the flood of-

He’s jolted from his ecstasy when he’s slammed into the ground. The rush of power fades, and he blinks several times, trying to get his bearings.

Kai leans over him, pinning him to the ground. “When I said ‘everything you’ve got’, I didn’t mean ‘try to kill me’.” He releases Jay, getting to his feet.

And that’s the last thing the human registers before the world around him fades to darkness.


	17. Puffy Potsticker

Jay blinks himself awake. What happened? Where is he? 

“You doing okay, Sparky?” Cole asks.

Jay studies his surroundings. It looks like he’s in some kind of medical room. He’d say a hospital, but something tells him that he’s still in Kai’s mansion. He’s laying on a white wheely bed, and Cole sits in a chair next to him.

“I guess?” Jay frowns, thinking back. He was going to test out his powers with Kai, and then-

Oh.

And then he shocked the living Hell out of both of them.

“Where’s Kai?” Jay feels his breath catch. He hurt Kai. Kai gave him a direct offer not to do that, and Jay still did it. Granted, it was an accident, but will the demon see it that way? He said that he thought Jay was trying to kill him! Is he going to count this as a deal-breaker? Is he-

“Right here.” The demon steps into the room, visibly disheveled.

“I’m sorry.” Jay gets out. “I didn’t mean to fry you like that. Please- please don’t-”

“Relax. I told you to go all out, didn’t I?” Kai smiles reassuringly.

Jay feels himself calm down some. So Kai isn’t going to take down the deal!

“I probably should’ve expected that. If anything,  **_I_ ** should be the one apologizing- you got it much worse than me.” Kai glances over Jay with a wince, clearly looking over his injuries.

Jay looks down at himself. The lightning didn’t leave any visible wounds, but he’s obviously not at his best.

“I’m not actually going to apologize, but-” Kai cuts himself off at Cole’s glare. “What? He was the one who did the shock!”

Cole sighs. “Just- whatever.”

Kai sighs and turns to Jay. “Fine. I’m sorry, okay? I’m sorry that I made you go all out when your body couldn’t handle it.” He then turns to Cole. “Happy?”

The vampire gives a smug smile. “Yes, actually.”

Kai just shakes his head and walks out. 

Cole turns back to Jay. “That's the best we’re going to get out of him.”

Jay just kinda sits there, dumbstruck. Kai just…  **_apologized_ ** ? To  **_Jay_ ** , of all people? Just because Cole seemed disapproving?

What the actual fuck?

“I, uh, I wasn’t even expecting that much.” The young adult admits. “And it was my fault, anyway.”

“Kai was the one you pressed you to go that far. You just did what you were told. And it’s not like you didn’t try to warn him.” Cole points out.

“I- I guess…” Jay trails off, still uncomfortable. He just can’t believe that Kai apologized to him. There’s got to be some kind of catch. It doesn’t make sense! Why would he apologize? It’s not like him to-

Or maybe it  **_is_ ** like him. Jay knows next to nothing about how the demon is supposed to be. He just knows how he’s been acting of late, and he already knows that that isn’t the norm.

Jay groans internally. Why does everything have to be so complicated?

“Kai’s really not so bad.” Cole starts, but then winces, seeming to recall what the demon had done. “Well, maybe he is. But he’s been doing better.”

The human glares. Yeaaaaah. ‘Not so bad’. Uh huh. Not like he did anything unforgivable and traumatizing or anything. 

The immortal looks away. “You think you’re doing well enough to stand?” He asks, getting up from his seat.

Without answering, Jay takes off the blanket and swings his legs over to the side of the bed. Before Cole can reach him, he gets to his feet.

He’s wobbly for a moment, but quickly steadies himself. “Looks like I am.”

“Let’s get you some fresh air. I think Zane has a garden for fresh ingredients.” Cole decides, though he still looks concerned.

Jay nods. “Been awhile since I’ve been outside.” He agrees.

So Cole leads him through the maze of hallways, keeping an eye on Jay like the human will fall over at any moment. Though he actually feels like he might, the young adult does his best to remain steady. He doesn’t need any help, thank you very much.

Soon enough, they’re in the entry hall. They stand just before the exit when the doors suddenly fly open with flourish, a familiar face standing in the entryway.

Oh. Oh no. This isn’t good. Why would he come here,  **_what the actual Hell is he doing here_ ** , Jay knew he was stupid, but not  **_this_ ** stupid!

“Hey, this isn’t Chen’s Noodle House!” Dareth notes as he looks around the room. 

Before Jay can blink, Cole is already in motion, darting across the room and pinning the confused brunet against the wall. “No, it’s not.” He agrees, his voice a dark rumble that seems to cut at Jay’s very soul- and it’s not even directed at him!

“Hey, mister vampire, you should back off. I don’t think you know who you’re dealing with here!” Dareth puffs his chest out confidently.

“Ignore him!” Jay yelps, grabbing Cole by the shoulder. “He doesn’t know what he’s talking about, trust me!” How the Hell did Dareth mistake Kai’s fortress for Chen’s Noodle House?! He must be stupider than the young adult thought.

“Humans aren’t welcome here.” Cole snarls, ignoring Jay’s desperate attempts to get his attention.

Its then that the Blue Ninja remembers what Cole was like when they first met. One particular thing he said stands out.

_ ‘ “Uh, what? He’s human. If he’s not food or entertainment, why’s he here?” ‘ _

Jay mentally kicks himself. What, so now that he’s all buddy-buddy with him, that makes the vampire not evil? He needs to get a grip! Cole has expressed that he wants to corrupt all of Ninjago! Just because Jay’s on his good side doesn’t make him any less evil.

“Uh, there’s a human right there.” Dareth points out.

Cole glares. “Why are you here?” He demands, his voice low and threatening.

“I’ll be the one asking the questions!” The brunet counters, clearly overconfident in his skill. He’d be outmatched even if he had any expertise to begin with! “Starting with the disappearance of the Puffy Potsticker!”

“We’ve already established that this  **_isn’t_ ** Chen’s Noodle House.” Cole growls. “Answer the damn question or-”

“What’s going on here?” Kai interrupts, suddenly appearing in the room. Huh, is that what it looks like when someone teleports? No flash of light, no nothing? Just…  **_appears_ ** ?

Huh.

“A human broke in.” Cole explains, not taking his eyes off of the self-proclaimed martial artist. 

“His name is Dareth.” Jay adds.

The vampire finally looks away from his target. “You know him?”

“He’s…” Jay hesitates. “... a friend?” His words are questioning and unsteady, and the young adult mentally kicks himself.

Kai arches an eyebrow, and Jay suddenly remembers the conversation they had yesterday.

_ ‘ “Did you have any friends?” _

_ “Wh- why do you want to know?” _

_ “Just curious.”  _

_ “I had my parents, but that’s about it.” ‘ _

Jay sighs, looking down. “Okay, so he’s not really a friend.” He admits.

“Hey!” Dareth protests.

“Let him go.” Kai decides, a small smile working across his face.

“Dissection?” Cole asks, releasing Dareth and stepping away. Jay almost wants to vomit at the excitement the vampire shows at the prospect.

Kai shakes his head, still smiling. He walks over to the brunet. “Dareth, right?” His menacing grin turns to a charming one.

Dareth puffs out his chest. “That’s me.”

The Blue Ninja grabs the demon by the sleeve. “Kai, listen, Dareth isn’t going to try anything. I know him. He’s not smart enough to do anything if he wanted to! We- we can just let him go, and-”

“Not smart enough?” Dareth interjects. “And I thought you knew me. Now, you better back off, or I’ll summon…  **_the dragon_ ** !”

“He can’t actually summon a dragon.” Jay is quick to add, letting go of Kai. 

The demon glances between the two of them. “I’m not going to kill him.” He assures Jay. “Just going to make him an offer.”

“An offer? Really?” Cole groans. “Can I at least feed off of him a little?”

Jay gives Cole a wary look, backing up a little. Right. Vampires feed off of people. That’s pretty much what makes them vampires. How could Jay forget that?

Kai ignores the other immortal, and turns back to Dareth. “Now, let’s make a deal. Cole, Jay, if you would leave us.”

The vampire nods with a sigh, and gestures for Jay to follow him out the doors. 

Right. They were going to Zane’s garden. Somehow, it doesn’t seem as appealing as it did before.

Reluctantly, the young adult follows Cole outside, and around to the back of the mansion. Walking around it, Jay starts to get an idea of how big the place really is. He’s only really been in a few rooms, a very small amount compared to the full size of it.

It takes them a little while, but soon enough, they reach the back of the fortress, where just as Cole said, a garden awaits.

The garden is surrounded by a wooden picket fence, and each kind of plant is labeled and nicely organized. It looks almost like the kind of garden you’d see in a cartoon.

The air is warm but not too hot, the sky is blue, and Jay even spots a butterfly flitting around. But despite the beautiful day, he’s not at ease. How could he be? 

“Something wrong?” Cole asks, stepping inside the bounds of the picket fence. 

Jay hesitates. Damn Kai and his no-lying rule. “I, uh… kinda.” He admits, distracting himself by trying to see if there’s any interesting plants he can recognize.

“Can I help?” The vampire prompts.

“Heh. Uh. Not really.” Jay looks away, silently willing Cole to just drop it. There’s no good way to explain this- not without risking making him upset.

“You underestimate me. What’s wrong?” The immortal presses, stepping closer to Jay with a concerned expression.

“You- he- ugh!” Jay groans. He knows what he wants to say, but he doesn’t quite know how to phrase it. 

“... it was how I reacted to Dareth, wasn’t it?” Cole realizes.

“You wanted to dissect him.” Jay mumbles weakly. If Cole didn’t have enhanced senses, it’s likely he wouldn’t have heard.

The vampire sighs. “You know I don’t think of you like that, right? I consider you a friend.”

“You wanted to dissect him.” Jay repeats, louder. “You- you wanted to  **_feed_ ** off of him.”

“I’m a vampire, I can’t help-”

“I know. I know.” Jay whispers. “I just… I forgot that you were evil. I… I guess I thought you were different, somehow. I- I was starting to consider you a friend. But when it comes down to it, you’re no better than Kai.”

Cole grimances. “Jay, listen-”

“I guess I kinda needed this. Needed the reminder of who you are, of  **_what_ ** you are. You’re not like me. You’re- you’re the vampire, Kai’s second in command. There’s a reason why I was scared of you when we first met. I guess my first impression of you was right.”

The immortal sighs. “You don’t need to be scared of me, Jay.”

“Why not?” The ginger demands. 

“Because-“

“What makes me different from Dareth, huh? I’m just as human as he is!” Jay interjects angrily, crossing his arms.

Cole hesitates. “I- I care about you.” He admits. “I guess I don’t view you as human anymore. You’re more than that.”

“No. No, I’m not.”

There’s a heavy pause, but it’s quickly broken by Cole’s upset groan. “What, do you  **_want_ ** me to want to dissect you?” 

“No, I want you to not want to dissect anyone!” Jay snaps back. “How is dissecting a human being any different than Zane being disassembled?! Do you not see what’s  **_wrong_ ** with it?!”

“Humans are different.” Cole protests weakly, but he sounds unsure of himself.

“Cole. You told me yourself.  **_You used to be human_ ** .” Jay reminds.

“What’s your point?” 

“ **_What’s my-_ ** ? I give up.” The human throws his hands up, exasperated. How can he not get it? Humans are capable of conscious thought too! Why the Hell would he be okay with dissecting one?!

“Jay-”

“Don’t wanna hear it.” Jay decides, turning away from the vampire. He knows he should be scared of Cole. But as of right now, he’s too upset to think clearly. Turning his back on him is a horrible idea, but Jay does it anyway.

Who needs common sense?

“I don’t want to lose you.” The vampire speaks softly, gently. His tone is comfortable, yet tinged with unmistakable sadness.

_ ‘ “I don’t want to lose you.” ‘ _

Kai had said the exact same words back in his room. Back with the creepy, way-too-long hug. But something is different about them this time. Not just that they came from Cole, but the context, the tone, something makes it different.

Not different enough.

The human’s mouth tastes ashen. He’s not scared, but he’s not quite sad. He’s somewhere in between. The words he speaks drip with this mixed emotion, and Jay doesn’t have to turn around to know that the mark hits home.

“You already have.”

  
  



	18. Snakes

Without waiting for a response, Jay breaks into a run, sprinting as fast as he can. He doesn’t know where he’s going, only that he needs to get as far away from the vampire as possible. Cole yells something after him, but he’s not listening. The only thing he can hear is the thrum of his racing heart and the pattering sound of his feet hitting the ground.

He sprints through the plain that the mansion was located on and into a forest. He travels at breakneck speed, ignoring the fact that it’ll tire him faster.

He’s not sure how far he runs, or for how long. And to be honest, he doesn’t care. The world is a blur around him, and he gasps for air as he starts running out of steam. But despite his exhaustion, he presses on, keeping his rapid pace.

But he can’t run forever. Eventually, he’s worn down by the rapid pace he had set, and he stumbles to a halt.

He crumbles down, fighting for his breath as the world almost seems to spin around him. “Maybe… maybe just a short break.” He murmurs to himself, leaning back against a nearby tree.

He glances around, trying to make sense of his surroundings. The trees stretch high into the sky, their leaves dappled with sunlight. Bushes and small plants cover the ground, and Jay marvels at the fact that he managed to run so fast without tripping and landing on his face.

But in short, he has no idea where he is. Sure, it’s a forest- a pretty forest at that- but that doesn’t help him in the slightest.

He spends a few more minutes on the ground, catching his breath. His legs burn from the strain he put on them, and he sighs. Seems like he’s always in some form of pain nowadays. Using the tree as support, he gets to his feet.

He glances around again. Can he even tell which direction he came from?

Apparently not. Despite running quickly, it seems he left no trail to follow. And given that he’s in a mysterious forest with no sense of direction, that can only mean one thing.

He’s lost.

Jay scans his surroundings again, hoping that maybe there’s something he missed. Maybe there’s a clue to which way the mansion is that he missed.

He spends a good fifteen minutes searching for that clue.

It never shows up.

“Kai’s going to kill me.” He mutters to himself, running a hand through his hair. “And that’s if Cole doesn’t do it first.” He glances around fearfully, half hoping that one of them will show up and take him back to the fortress.

Luckily or, well, maybe unfortunately- no one shows up. He’s lost in the woods, alone, god knows how far from civilization.

But it’s fine. It’s cool. Jay just has to survive in the wilderness with no supplies or survival skills for who knows how long while waiting for someone to find him, even though no one knows where he went.

Holy shit, he’s going to die.

Taking a shaky breath, he scans the area once more, before setting off in a random direction. He decides to head left. Some kind of gut feeling tells him to, so he does. Honestly, he should listen to his gut more often. His brain is the thing causing the problems.

Stupid brain.

He starts his trek through the woods, keeping a sharp eye out for anything that might help him find his way. But as he makes his way through the forest, a sudden thought strikes him, and he stops in his tracks.

Kai won’t end the deal because of this, will he? Well, he never told Jay explicitly not to run away, but it was kind of an implied part of the agreement. So far, Kai has been more than lenient with him. But is this the final straw? Will the demon have finally reached his breaking point?

Shaking his head, Jay continues on his way. He doesn’t have time for thoughts like that. He’ll deal with it later. 

If he’s still around later to deal with it… 

No! Bad brain! This is what he meant when he said his brain was causing problems! He can’t afford to think like that, he needs to stay positive.

The woods seem to stretch on forever. Each tree is near identical to the last. He’s getting nowhere. If anything, he’s more lost than he was when he started!

Jay groans, pinching the bridge of his nose. Why did he have to run away?

Oh yeah. Because Cole couldn’t seem to understand the concept of conscious thought and thought it was okay to  **_fucking dissect people_ ** .

Not that Jay’s upset about it or anything.

He continues to meander his way through the woods. He’s not entirely sure how long it’s been since he’s left, but definitely way over an hour has passed, meaning Kai most likely knows about his escape.

Maybe if he’s lucky, the demon will find him before he gets himself into irreversible trouble. Because judging by the way his life has been going, that’ll happen sooner or later.

Now, what will happen when Kai finds him-  **_if_ ** Kai finds him- is a mystery. But something tells Jay that he’s going to get into some form of trouble.

“Is it just me, or is this forest getting spookier?” Jay comments to himself, glancing around. The trees seem to spike up from the ground, leafless and twisted. The air is coated in a light mist, and Jay shudders from a sudden chill.

When did it get so creepy?

But regardless of the sudden ominous feeling, Jay presses onward. This place doesn’t look familiar, but he wasn’t really looking around when he was running. He probably passed it without realizing.

Yeah, that’s it.

Looking around, he notices what looks like a man-made structure. Cautiously, he makes his way towards it. 

It’s a tall, creepy entryway into a graveyard. 

Who puts a graveyard in the middle of a forest?

He shouldn’t go in the graveyard. It’ll most likely get him killed by skeleton warriors, or some zombie-like monster.

Zombies are a thing, right?

Screw it, he’s going in the graveyard. It’s the only man-made structure he’s seen in over an hour. What’s the worst that could happen?

Carefully, Jay makes his way into the cemetery, fearfully glancing around. Something is going to jump out at him at any moment, he knows it.

He walks toward the center, where he spots an oddly shaped tree, one that looks almost like a two-headed creature of some sort.

But that’s just a coincidence… right?

Narrowing his eyes, he takes a step closer, trying to see if there’s anything that could help him find his way.

Something he steps on makes a loud  **_‘click’_ ** , and he quickly stumbles backward, but the damage has already been done.

A hidden door swings inward, and Jay falls back as red and white creatures suddenly start jumping out with ridiculous speed, quickly surrounding him in places around the graveyard.

He turns around, only to come face-to-face with a two-headed snake person.

Wait just a minute…

These are Serpentine! Jay’s heard rumors about them before, but he always dismissed them as just that: Rumors.

But now that he’s cornered by them, he can’t help but wish he had listened. Maybe he could have learned something that could help him.

Too late now… 

The head on his left speaks first. “And who…” It’s cut off by the other head, who continues, “... may I sssay releasssed us…” Then the first head cuts the other one off, “... from our captivity?”

Jay blinks, fighting back a whimper. This is fine, this is totally fine, this is  **_EXACTLY WHAT HE MEANT WHEN HE SAID THAT HE’D GET IN IRREVERSIBLE TROUBLE!_ **

“J- Jay Walker.” He stammers, looking back and forth between the two heads, unsure of which one to focus on. “I, uh… Look, I- I don’t want any trouble. I just got lost in the woods.”

The left head opens its mouth to speak, but a sudden rumble in the ground shakes the earth around them, sending both Jay and the Serpentine stumbling.

A muddy brown dragon soars overhead, and the ground trembles once more. Jay falls backward, almost landing in the cavern the snakes had jumped out of.

Cole’s voice rings out from overhead. “Jay I swear to the First Spinjitzu Master if you just woke up the Fangpyre, I’m going to-”

Jay can’t quite make out the rest of the sentence over the angry hissing and the sound of the earth splitting and shaking. Cracks open in the ground, creating deep caverns that open up into the cave that the Serpentine had been stuck in.

The dragon swoops low, and he can see Cole riding on it’s back. Suddenly, the dragon vanishes, and the vampire falls to the ground, landing in a fighting stance.

The Serpentine stumble out of his way as he marches over to the human, a furious expression on his face.

“You and I need to have a talk.” Cole snarls, grabbing Jay by the arm.

Uh oh… 

“Heh. As long as I’m not lost in the woods anymore.” The young adult agrees nervously. 

Cole turns to face the Serpentine who had spoken. “I recommend you all stay out of the way. There’s a war coming, and it’s likely you’ll get caught in the crossfire.” His voice is a low growl, that dark one that seems to injure Jay’s soul.

How  **_does_ ** he do that? It’s really creepy.

Without waiting for a response, he starts to drag the young adult away from the Serpentine. Jay feels his hand catch on something, though he’s not sure what. But with Cole pulling him along, it comes free pretty quickly, with only a small pin-prick of pain.

Cole releases his arm and jumps into the air, the dragon appearing under him. “Climb on.” He orders.

Jay does as he’s told, scrambling up the side of the dragon to sit behind the vampire. God, he’s going to be in so much trouble.

He didn’t  **_mean_ ** to go wake up a Serpentine tribe! He didn’t even know Serpentine were real! Well, considering that demons, ghosts and vampires are, he probably should’ve guessed, but he didn’t. Will Kai buy that it was an accident? Especially when combined with the fact that he ran away… 

“You’re going to want to hold on.” Cole tells him. 

Jay nods quickly, wrapping his arms around the vampire. It feels somewhat awkward, but Cole doesn’t comment on it, so he remains silent on the matter.

And with that, the dragon takes off, Cole tightly holding onto the reins. Jay quickly realizes that he’s not holding on tight enough and adjusts his grip so he doesn’t go flying off.

They even out in the air, maybe a mile above the ground. They slow down some, and Jay nervously glances around, doing his best not to look down.

“You want to tell me what was going through your head when you decided to wake up the Fangpyre?” Cole’s voice is smooth, but tight with annoyance.

“I didn’t do it on purpose! I was lost, and I-”

“And you just so happened to stumble upon a long-forgotten tomb and ‘accidently’ release them.” Cole interrupts, clearly not believing him. They glide lightly in what’s hopefully the direction of the mansion.

“That  **_is_ ** what happened!” Jay insists. “I didn’t even know Serpentine were real!”

The vampire sighs. “Look, just tell me why you did it. I’m sure that I can explain it in a way that’ll keep Kai from getting upset.”

“I don’t have a reason, because it was an accident!” Jay protests. “I didn’t mean to wake them up! Why on Ninjago would I unleash a bunch of crazy snake-people?!”

“You tell me.”

“Because I was lost in the woods and the graveyard was the first man-made structure I had seen in over an hour and I stumbled onto a button that opened the tomb.” Jay explains. God, if Cole doesn’t believe him, Kai probably won’t even listen.

Jay can see the clearing that the fortress is in from here, even though they’re still several miles away. Geez, how far did he run?

“What are the chances of you ‘accidently’ stepping on the button?” Cole scoffs.

“I don’t know! But with my luck, it seems that anything negative is possible.” The human grumbles.

The vampire seems to consider this. After a few moments, he sighs. “I guess I can’t argue with that.”

They reach the edge of the clearing, only about half a mile away from the castle.

Jay hesitates a moment. “But, uh… I- I don’t think Kai will believe me.”

“Probably not.” Cole agrees.

The young adult bites his lip nervously.“He won’t- d’you think he’ll end the deal?”

“No, I don’t. I don’t think there’s anything that could make him end it- well, other than killing one of us.” The vampire comments.

Jay frowns. “Wha- What do you mean?”

“If he ends the deal, he won’t be able to control you anymore. As of right now, it’s the only thing keeping you in check. Sure, he might get mad and psychologically scar you, but he won’t forfeit the deal.” The immortal explains. 

They circle around the mansion a few times, before landing just outside the entrance. The dragon suddenly disappears underneath them.

Tumbling toward the ground, Jay lets loose a screech, panicking at the realization that he’s going to smack into the ground. But right before he does, he’s caught Cole’s arms. The vampire quickly sets him on his feet.

“Th- thanks.” The young adult gets out, trying to hide his embarrassment from the scream. Great, another way to make himself look like a dumbass. Not like he hasn’t done  **_that_ ** enough.

Cole gives a short nod in response, and starts walking towards the entrance. Jay scampers after him, silently cursing himself for being such an idiot.

Right as they reach the doors, they swing open, Kai standing in the entryway. His expression is downright murderous.

This isn’t going to end well.

The demon grabs Jay by the shirt. “What the actual Hell, Walker?!” He growls, getting in the human’s face.

Jay opens his mouth to answer, but Kai cuts him off before he can even speak. “Nope. Don’t wanna hear it.” He turns around, and still holding Jay by the shirt, storms down the hall, dragging the young adult behind him.

Aaaand he’s being dragged on the floor again. Wonderful.

Cole quickly follows after them. “There’s, uh, there’s something else you should know.” He sounds somewhat nervous, but he’s doing a decent job of hiding it. 

“And what’s that?” Kai demands, not even turning to look at the vampire. Jay bites his lip, preparing for the demon’s freak out.

Cole hesitates a moment, glancing down at Jay. But he looks back up at Kai and tells him, “He accidently released the Fangpyre.”

Kai freezes. He drops Jay, letting the human fall the rest of the way to the floor. “I’m sorry, what?”

Jay winces at the fall, even though it wasn’t very high and he was half on the ground anyway. His upper body doesn’t like being dropped, thank you very much.

“Pretty sure you heard me the first time.”

The demon turns to face Jay. “You released the Fangpyre.”

“It was an accident.” Jay tries weakly.

“Right. An accident.” Kai glares, narrowing his eyes. His expression has gone from murderous to cold and calculating.   
  


“It- It was!” Jay protests. But he already knows that the demon won’t believe him. 

“Didn’t I tell you not to lie?” His voice is a dark growl, and he grabs Jay by the arm as he starts to drag him down the hallway again.

Cole gives a small wave, clearly fighting back a grimace.

Jay ignores him, choosing to focus on Kai instead. “I’m not lying!” He argues, debating attempting to free himself from the demon’s grasp. In the end, he decides against it.

“Bluejay, I am  **_this close_ ** to snapping. I recommend you stop talking.” Kai snarls angrily, glaring down at the human.

“But-”

“Zip it.” The demon interjects, his voice stone cold.

Jay shuts up. God, what has he gotten himself into now? He just wanted to be alone for a little while, and now- and now-

Hey, didn’t Cole mention that Kai might  **_psychologically scar_ ** him? Like, give him permanent trauma? Well, it’s not like the demon hasn’t done that already, but what if he does something worse? What if he gets people who  **_aren’t_ ** from Ninjago City and kills them in front of him? What if he-

Kai drags him through the maze of hallways in a direction he recognizes. A direction that makes a sinking feeling start in Jay’s stomach.

Back towards Kai’s room.

No. He’s not going to do it again. He wouldn’t. He saw what it did to Jay! He wouldn’t-

But wouldn’t he?

Panicking, Jay attempts to twist himself free from Kai’s grasp. He’s got to get out of here! He won’t let him do it again, he can’t handle it again, no, this can’t be happening-

This is it. They’re right outside the door. Kai’s going to-

Wordlessly, the demon drags him past the room without the slightest pause. As soon as they walk past, Jay relaxes, letting himself get pulled along.

As long as Kai doesn’t do  **_that_ ** again, it’ll be okay. He’ll be okay.

Much to his surprise, Kai drags him into a library. Huh. He didn’t even realize the fortress had one of those.

Rows of bookshelves line every section of the room, and the room is  **_huge_ ** . There must be thousands of books and scrolls, and that’s only what Jay can see!

Are there books on engineering here? That would be  **_amazing_ ** . He could-

Wait. Kai’s mad at him right now. Why is he bringing him to a library?

Zane sits at a table, and the demon drags Jay over to it, picking him up and manhandling him into a chair across from the Nindroid. 

“Find him some books on Serpentine. The Fangpyre tribe, if we have it.” Kai orders, giving Jay a glare.

Zane nods. “We have books on all of the Serpentine tribes. Is there any particular thing about them you’d like him to learn?”

“Yeah. How dangerous they are.” And with that, Kai turns around and walks out, the door slamming shut behind him.

The Nindroid gets up and heads back behind some bookshelves, most likely going to find the books Kai requested for Jay.

But why did the demon decide to teach him rather than yell at him? There’s got to be some kind of catch here.

But what could it be? Why would he-

Hmm. Maybe someone finally got through to him. Convinced him to not lash out so much.

No, that can’t be it. Kai seemed  **_really_ ** angry, so there’s got to be some kind of punishment here, something that Jay just can’t see.

… something tells him that whatever’s in these books, he’s not going to like it.


	19. Human

A few minutes later, Zane returns with several old looking tomes and some scrolls. He sets them down on the table in front of Jay. But before the Blue Ninja can reach for one, Zane starts moving them around, organizing them.

“Before I give you anything on the Fangpyre, how much do you know about Serpentine in general?” The Nindroid asks, not looking up from his organization.

“The question is, what  **_don’t_ ** I know about Serpentine?” Jay gives a small laugh. “And the answer is everything, I didn’t even know they were real until a few hours ago.”

“Serpentine and humans used to live in harmony. But this peace was fragile, and when the Serpentine tried to warn the humans about a prophecy, the humans didn’t believe them. In an attempt to save the humans, the Serpentine started to cause chaos and destruction to scare them into hiding. This, however, started a war. The humans won the war and drove all five tribes beneath the surface in tombs. This explanation is grossly oversimplified, but hopefully is detailed enough to give you a rough idea of them.” Zane explains.

Jay blinks. “So. Uh. I may have just re-started a war?”

“Quite possibly, yes. But if they do attempt to resume such a war, it is unlikely that Kai will stand for it.” Zane confirms.

Jay remains silent, unsure of what to say. He may have just started a war by getting lost in the woods.

What even is his life at this point?

Zane sets a large tome in front of him. “This is a book on the Fangpyre tribe. I recommend you start with chapter three.”

“Why chapter three?”

“That is where it begins describing their special ability; their bite.” Zane explains.

Jay nods, and opens the book. Hopefully it’s not  **_too_ ** boring.

* * *

So according to the book, Jay fucked up.  
  


Apparently the Fangpyre have the ability to turn everything into Serpentine. Objects, people, literally  **_everything_ ** . Meaning that they could pretty easily take over the world by just turning everything into snakes.

And Jay just let them out to go do whatever the Hell they want to do- likely re-start the war. Meaning that every causality will be on his hands. Every life lost will be because of him. 

Well… they’re unlikely to try to kill people. They’ll probably just turn everyone into snakes.

But do people keep their conscious thought when they’re turned, or do they become corrupted, like with Dark Matter? The book doesn’t even mention it, but it  **_does_ ** mention a way to cure it- the anti-venom held in the staff.

Which isn’t very helpful, because it seems impossible to get anywhere near the staff in the first place, considering the General- AKA the most powerful Serpentine in the tribe- is the one that holds onto it.

Zane comes from around the corner, holding another book. He walks over to the table, but when his eyes skim over Jay, they widen, and he drops the book. It thuds loudly against the ground, but the Nindroid doesn’t even seem to notice.

He reaches a hand up to his ear. “Kai, we’ve got a problem.” He doesn’t take his eyes off of Jay, watching him like he’s about to grow a second head.

There’s a muffled response, and Zane frowns. “No, it’s not that. Just- if you would come down and see for yourself.”

“What’d I do this time?” Jay asks, tensing up. “I was just reading a book!”

Zane takes his hand down from his ear. “You did nothing wrong.” He assures, though he still looks uneasy. 

“Then why are you looking at me like that?” Jay questions.

Zane doesn’t answer, looking to the entrance of the library.

The door opens, and Kai walks into the room, sighing. “What is it now?” He demands, walking over to them. But he falters mid-stride when his eyes land on Jay. “Oh.”

“Okay, the two of you are really starting to freak me out now.” The young adult looks between the Red and White Ninja. Just what is going on here?

“How long ago did he start showing symptoms?” Kai ignores him, choosing to focus on Zane instead.

“I only noticed them a minute ago.” The Nindroid admits. “But I wasn’t exactly looking for them.” He gives Jay a concerned look.

“Symptoms? Of what?” The Blue Ninja questions, unease creeping into his voice. He glances around the room, though he’s not entirely sure why- the room around him won’t explain what’s happening.

“How long do we have before it fully comes into effect?” Kai demands, still ignoring Jay. Ugh. No one ever wants to answer his questions!

“Approximately twenty-one hours.” Zane replies.

“And once that happens, its irreversible, right?” Kai looks to the Nindroid for confirmation.

“That is correct.” The White Ninja nods.

“Keep an eye on Jay and Dareth, Cole and I will go down and see if we can get our hands on the anti-venom.”

Wait… anti-venom? Are they referring to the Fangpyre? But- but-

Jay’s eyes widen. “I’m not- they didn’t bite me! How could I be-”

“Mini-snakes.” Zane explains. “A bite from one isn’t as potent as one coming from a regular Fangpyre, but it is still enough to turn someone.”

The young adult has a sudden flashback to when his hand got caught on something. Maybe that’s not quite what happened… 

“I’m turning into a snake?!” Jay screeches, his eyes going wide. He looks to Kai for reassurance that this isn’t happening, that he misinterpreted this.

“Into a Serpentine.” Zane corrects.

Kai sighs. “Time to go threaten the Fangpyre.” He turns around, beginning to walk away. He puts a hand up to his ear. “Cole, meet me in the entry hall. I’ll explain on the way.”

Jay glances between the Red and White Ninja. He’s turning into a snake. This is- this is fine. Completely and totally fine. He’s not freaking out, why would he be freaking out? It’s not like he’s turning into a  **_fucking snake_ ** \- oh wait! That’s  **_exactly_ ** what’s happening.

He watches as Kai leaves the room, keeping a close eye on the demon. Once he’s out of sight, he breathes a sigh of relief. Well, that’s one less thing to worry about.

Zane puts a hand on his shoulder. “It will be okay.” He assures. “Kai will get the anti-venom.”

Jay looks over at the hand on his shoulder. Why is Zane touching him? Zane doesn’t like humans. Oh god, he’s going to try to kill Jay or something equally horrible! He doesn’t have time to be murdered, he’s too busy turning into a  **_fucking snake_ ** !

Zane must see the terror on his face, because he lets go and takes a step back. “We need to go find Dareth.”

“He’s still here?!” Jay squawks, disbelieving. Wouldn’t Kai have gotten rid of him by now? What could he possibly gain from that?!

“He made a deal.” Zane explains, starting to make his way to the exit of the library. He doesn’t look to see if Jay is following him- which doesn’t really matter, because he does.

The young adult gives a nervous laugh as he attempts to keep up with the Nindroid. “You- you’re kidding, right? That’s a joke? Kai wouldn’t-”

“My humor switch is not on.” Zane informs him. They step out of the library and into the halls, walking down them in what appears to be a random direction- though Zane most likely knows where he’s going.

“Can- can I ask what the deal was, exactly?” Jay questions anxiously. What has the self-proclaimed martial artist gotten himself into now?

“Dareth lives here and follows orders, and Kai doesn’t kill him.” The Nindroid explains, continuing down the halls.

“And, uh… why would Kai make that deal?” Jay presses. That doesn’t seem like something that would benefit the demon much, so why would he make an agreement like that? 

“He thought you might need a human friend to help you adjust.” Zane tells him, opening a door. He glances inside the room before moving back down the maze of hallways.

Jay glances into the room as he walks by, but doesn’t see anything of note. It just looks like a smaller, less organized version of the game room.

He’s not entirely sure how to respond to that. If he got to choose who he brought, now that would be a different story. He’d have picked… well. Who would he have picked? Not Dareth, but he doesn’t exactly know a lot of people. Hell, does he even know the postman’s real name?

He racks his brain for the answer, but comes up blank. Apparently he doesn’t. Considering that he spoke to the guy almost daily, that’s probably not a good thing.

Does he even know anyone else? Well, he knows Mr. MacAllister, the owner of  _ ‘Ninjago Doomsday Comix’ _ , but… that’s about it.

Wow, his life was sad even before he met Kai.

Zane pokes his head into another room, looking around. After a moment, he opens the door the rest of the way. Jay peeks over his shoulder, trying to see what’s inside.

It looks like an office of some kind, complete with a wooden desk, swivel chair, computer, and a bookshelf. But what catches his attention the most is Dareth, who is sitting in the chair with his feet up on the desk, talking to a very uninterested Green.

“-and there I was, moments away from winning the championship, when suddenly-”

“Zane!” Green jumps to his feet, interrupting the brunet. “What brings you here?” He’s clearly looking for a change in subject- most likely tired of hearing the self-proclaimed martial artist talk. Seriously, the guy just doesn’t know how to shut up- Jay’s experienced  **_that_ ** first-hand.

But the possessed angel narrows his eyes as he notices Jay. “Hold on. Jay ran into the Fangpyre? I thought they were imprisoned.”

“They were.” Zane confirms. “But that is not important. You may be dismissed. I will keep an eye on Dareth.”

Green studies Jay for a moment, his careful eyes piercing. But he slowly turns his gaze to the Nindroid and gives a short nod. “Right. Okay.” 

And with that, the possessed angel makes his way out of the room, leaving them alone. But before he makes it out of earshot, he calls over his shoulder, “He’s calling himself the Brown Ninja.”

Jay’s eyes widen. He’s  **_voluntarily_ ** proclaiming himself a Ninja? What the actual Hell is going on in his head?!

But Zane doesn’t comment on it, he just walks over and sits in the chair that was previously occupied by Green. “Please, continue your story. I’m sure it is very riveting.”

Fighting back a groan, Jay trudges over and sits on the floor next to Zane. Here’s to hoping Kai gets back with the antidote soon.

Wow, is he actually excited to see Kai again? Jeez, he hates Dareth more than he thought… 

But despite Jay’s objections to the situation, Dareth begins weaving his elaborate tale of an epic adventure that most likely never happened. Within the first five minutes alone the young adult hears him contradict himself at least a dozen times.

But Zane is just as attentive as he was during Jay’s monologue about Fritz Donnagen, asking questions and sharing ideas. He seems completely at ease and almost as if he’s enjoying himself, but there’s something about the look in his neon eyes that expresses his distaste with it all.

Hmm. If Jay had looked at Zane for more than a moment during his own monologue, would he have seen the same revulsion? It seems pretty likely, and it makes the young adult wince. Zane really  **_doesn’t_ ** like humans. That said, he can do a pretty good job of hiding it when he wants to.

But there’s not much the young adult can do about it. It’s not like he can turn to Zane and say,  _ ‘Hey, sorry for being human.’ _ . All he can do is be thankful that Kai’s rules prevent the Nindroid from hurting him.

Dareth continues his long speech about his amazing successes in the world of martial arts. Every minute seems to stretch out into hours, but Zane remains as attentive as ever, even going as far as to laugh at his jokes. It’s surprising how realistic the laugh sounds, when its so obviously fake. Jay can’t help but be impressed with it.

At one point, he gets up and makes to leave the room, but without looking over or even the slightest change in expression, Zane grabs him by the wrist with an iron grip. The young adult makes a half-hearted escape attempt, but he already knows he’s trapped. Sighing, he sits back down, the Nindroid letting go when it becomes evident he’s not trying to flee.

Eventually, Jay hits his breaking point. He makes a frustrated noise that probably sounds like a dying whale and puts his head in his hands. “Please. Please stop. I can’t take it anymore!”

Zane glances over at him. “I can have Morro watch you, if you wish.”

“That would be amazing. Thank you.” Jay doesn’t comment on the fact that the Nindroid didn’t call him Green- though he does wonder why. Everyone else is doing it, so why wouldn’t he?

Zane nods, bringing a hand up to his ear. Hmm. Is Jay the only one without an earpiece? Well, it’s likely that Dareth doesn’t have one either. Is there a reason for that, or has Kai just not gotten around to giving it to them yet?

“Morro, I need you to keep an eye on Jay. And I’ll warn you once again against trying anything.” The Nindroid speaks into his communicator.

Dareth looks at Jay. “I know my stories aren’t for the faint of heart.” He assures the Blue Ninja, who merely nods in response. If Dareth just gives him an excuse, then it’s technically not breaking the no-lying rule.

Zane brings his hand down from his ear. “He will be here at any moment.” He informs Jay.

The young adult nods, relieved. He’d much rather be glared at by Green than talked at by Dareth. Seriously, the guy seems to think so highly of himself that he doesn’t even realize the danger of his situation. Does he not know that Zane hates humans?

Then again, Jay did the same thing. But only because he was asked to!

Green walks into the room, an annoyed expression carved into his face. “Kai’s going to be back any minute now.”

Zane gives a short nod. “Watch him until then.”

The possessed angel groans, but gestures for Jay to follow him. “Come on.”

The young adult glances at Zane. Thinking back to his realization on the rooftop, a sudden idea forms in his mind. Sure, the White Ninja might be annoyed, but he already hates Jay anyways.

“Ight, imma head out.” He flashes the Nindroid a grin.

Zane closes his eyes and takes a deep breath as he tilts his head slightly to the side. He looks like he’s resisting the urge to smack the young adult.

And so with that, Jay grabs Green by the arm and runs out of the room. While the Nindroid technically can’t hurt the young adult because of Kai’s rules, that probably won’t stop him from finding some other way to make his life miserable.

“Why are we running?” Green questions, planting his feet into the ground to stop the Blue Ninja’s rapid pace, bringing them to a halt.

“I made a internet reference, and Zane doesn’t like those.” Jay explains. 

“Then why would you make it?” Green frowns, wrenching his arm from the young adult’s grasp.

“Because Zane doesn’t like those.” Jay does his best innocent expression. He’s starting to get tired of Kai’s allies being mean, so why not annoy them for a change?

“Are you an idiot?” The possessed angel stares at him.

“The correct way to phrase that question is,  _ ‘Do you have stupid?’ _ .” Jay corrects with a grin.

Green frowns, closing his eyes. After a moment, a reluctant smile crosses his face. He opens his eyes, rolling them. “That’s so funny I forgot to laugh.”

“What was that?” Jay frowns.

“What was what?” Green questions, tilting his head. 

“The closing your eyes thing.” The young adult clarifies, giving the possessed angel a suspicious glance.

“Looking at Lloyd’s memories. Figured maybe he’d understand whatever joke you were trying to make.” Green shrugs. 

Jay feels himself tense up. Right. Green is actually Morro in Lloyd’s body. He’s possessing him.

How does he keep forgetting that these people are evil?

“Everything okay?”

“Hmm? Yeah, uh, everything’s cool.” Jay lies. Technically he’s lying to the Green Ninja, so once again, Kai can’t call him out for it.

Loopholes for the win!

Unless it’s a loophole in the deal that allows Kai and the Overlord to turn all of Ninjago evil. Then they’re not so good.

Wait… they’ve defeated Lloyd, right? Why hasn’t the Overlord invaded yet? Why is Ninjago still intact?

Maybe his armies just haven’t arrived yet. Maybe he’s still preparing. Maybe he’s just finalizing his evil plans.

But maybe Kai hasn’t told him. Maybe the Red Ninja is keeping it a secret. Maybe the demon is protecting Ninjago.

But why? What could he gain from that?

Jay shakes his head, dispelling the thoughts. He doesn’t know what’s going on with the Overlord. It’s most likely one of his first few ideas.

But Jay can hope, can’t he? Kai hasn’t told him that  **_that’s_ ** against the rules… yet.

“I really need to talk to Kai about that loophole you have.” Green grumbles, starting to walk down the halls. “But more importantly, I need a drink.”

“Uh. Isn’t Lloyd a teenager?” Jay quickly follows the possessed angel.

“Yeah, and I was one when I died. Never actually drank before, but from what I’ve heard, it’ll be a good way to distract myself.” 

“Distract yourself from what?” The young adult asks, narrowing his eyes.

“That’s not for you to know.” Green shoots back, walking into the main kitchen. Huh. Jay didn’t realize how close they were. 

At least he knows that Zane isn’t in the fridge this time.

“Why does everyone around here like secrets so much?” Jay questions.

Green sighs. “Look, it’s just something stupid that Dareth said. Not a big deal.” He starts to look through the pantry.

“If you need to distract yourself from it, it’s probably bothering you. C’mon, I promise I won’t tell anyone. Well, not unless I’m directly asked.” Jay gives his best winning smile.

The possessed angel glares at the pantry like it’s personally offending him. “It’s not a big deal.” He insists.

“If it’s not a big deal, then you won’t mind telling me.” Jay presses. 

“You’re not gonna drop this, are you?” Green continues digging through the cabinet. 

“Nope!” The young adult agrees in a cheerful tone.

“Its not something you need to concern yourself with. Drop it.” The possessed angel orders, looking away from the pantry in order to glare at Jay.

Jay bites his lip. Technically Kai never said he had to follow Green’s orders… but not listening could make one or both of them upset, which doesn’t seem like a smart move.

“I’m turning into a snake.” It’s an abrupt subject change, but Jay has to talk about  **_something_ ** .

“I noticed. What happened with the Fangpyre?”

“I, uh… I accidentally woke them up…” Jay admits somewhat sheepishly. Its really not his fault, though. Well, he was the one to walk into the creepy graveyard, but other than that, it’s not his fault.

Green closes the pantry doors. “People have been searching for the tombs since the day they were imprisoned, and you find it by accident?”

“If you haven’t noticed, I have really bad luck.”

The possessed angel rolls his eyes. “You and me both.” He walks over to the fridge, pulling it open. “Why do they only have ingredients?”

“I think they have a cake somewhere.” Jay pipes up.

“It’s been so long since I’ve had a physical body to eat with, if I have cake I might just cry.” Green starts to dig through the refrigerator. 

“Cole might get upset if you eat it, though.” Jay adds. The vampire had seemed really excited when he thought he could get away with eating it for breakfast, so Jay’s not sure how he’d react to someone else having it.

“Don’t care, I want cake.” The possessed angel continues digging through the fridge. “That breakfast we had this morning was the first thing I’ve eaten in decades.”

“Uh. How old are you?”

“I was eighteen when I died.” Green tells him, not looking away from his search. “But I’ve been dead for a little under a hundred years.”

“Quick question: Does everyone become a ghost when they die?”

“Nope. Only people who… well. Let’s not get into that. How old are you, anyways?” Green deflects.

Jay narrows his eyes. What are the qualifications for becoming a ghost? But despite his reservations, he answers the possessed angel’s question. “Twenty-three.”

“I forgot that humans have such short lifespans.” Green muses to himself. “But First Spinjitzu Master, Kai really went low.”

“How old is Kai?” Jay asks warily.

“Not sure what his exact age is, but he’s at least three-thousand.” Green answers nonchalantly, still digging through the fridge. “Are you sure they have a cake?”

“ **_Three-thousand?!_ ** ” Jay shrieks. “But- but-”

“He’s an immortal. They don’t age like humans do. Sure, they seem to age normally until they’re about twenty, then it slows down. Wu only looks so old because he’s been around since shortly after the dawn of time.” 

“Kai’s over three-thousand years old.” Jay stares at Green blankly. “How can he be  **_that old_ ** and still act like a child?”

The possessed angel laughs. “That’s a good question.” His eyes widen, and he pulls a chocolate cake from the fridge. “Found it!”

Zane walks into the room, trailed by Dareth. “Put the cake down, Morro.” He glares at Green, crossing his arms.

Green looks at the cake longingly. “But-”

“No. Put it back.” Zane orders.

The possessed angel makes direct eye contact with the Nindroid, staring him down. The atmosphere grows tense, and Jay finds himself glancing between the two of them, wondering what exactly is going to go down. The uneasy feeling only grows as the seconds tick past, and the young adult wonders what would happen if he just turned around and left.

“If he can’t have the cake, can I?” Dareth asks, shattering the silence.

Zane turns his gaze to the brunet. “Yes.”

Green gives the Nindroid a betrayed expression, and opens his mouth, clearly about to make a scathing remark.

“Really?!” Dareth grins.   
  


“Of course not.”

Jay stifles a laugh. Who knew that Zane could be sassy? Not the young adult, that’s for sure. The Nindroid always seems so stoic and serious, and it makes it that much funnier that he was so cheeky.

Green has a reluctant smile on his face, and with a roll of his eyes, he puts the cake back in the refrigerator.

Crisis averted! Now Jay just has to wonder if Dareth did that on purpose, or if he’s actually that dumb. If it was intentional, it was quite the risk. If it wasn’t, well, at least it worked out in their favor.

“Why not?” Dareth questions. “If I’m not getting my puffy potsticker-“

“Shut up about the puffy potsticker!” Green yells, but he sounds more exasperated than angry. “This is your final warning!”

Jay glances between them. He said he was upset about something that Dareth said, so maybe if the young adult can get Dareth alone, he could find out what it is!

“I came to inform you that Kai has returned.” Zane tells them. “He said he wishes to speak with Jay.”

“Okay, then let’s-“

“Alone.” The Nindroid amends. He glances at the human with what looks like pity. And that is definitely  **_not_ ** a good sign.

Jay swallows. “O- okay. Lead the way.”

“You know how to get to Kai’s room.” Zane points out. “And I do not believe you are stupid enough to try anything. You may go.”

Jay hesitates. He really doesn’t want to be alone with Kai. But he doesn’t get a say in it. He has no choice but to do as the demon demands.

The young adult nods. “I’ll, uh… I’ll see you later, then.”

And with that, he starts walking down the maze of hallways. It’s surprising how quickly he’s memorized how to get to the demon’s room, but he probably did it so he’d know where to avoid.

Except now he’s willingly walking straight there. Throwing himself into the lion's den. God knows what Kai has planned for him. If it was just the anti-venom, he probably wouldn’t have insisted on being alone. So he’s definitely got something in mind.

Hopefully he’s not going to do  **_it_ ** again. As long as he doesn’t do that, it’ll be fine. Jay can handle whatever he throws his way.

On shaky legs, he walks up to the door. He hesitates a moment, before quietly knocking. Better to just get it over with. 

“Come in.” Kai calls. 

Reluctantly, Jay pushes open the door. Kai is sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at the wall. “Close the door behind you.”

The young adult steps inside and does as he’s told. It shuts with a loud click, and Jay swallows. This doesn’t look good… 

“I’m not curing you.”

He’s… he’s not referring to the Fangpyre bite, is he? He wouldn’t just let Jay turn into a snake… right?

“What- what do you mean?”

“If you’re the ‘lone human’, the best way to take you out of the equation would be to kill you. But I don’t want to do that. The next best thing would be to make you not be human anymore.” Kai doesn’t finish the thought, but it’s clear what he’s getting at.

“I- I’m going to turn into a snake?!” Jay’s breathing begins to pick up. Oh, god. He’s going to turn into a snake!

Kai gets up from the bed, running a hand through his hair. How it doesn’t get stuck on the spikes is a mystery. “It wasn’t my call.” He tells the human.

Jay tilts his head. The only one who can tell Kai what to do is the Overlord, so-

“The attack on Ninjago begins tomorrow, and we can’t afford to deal with the ‘lone human’.”

Wait…  **_what?_ **


	20. The Beginning Of The End, For Real This Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is really short, but it’s going to be one of the last chapters and I really wanted to get this one out.

Jay stands there, staring. Tomorrow? With the way the world has been crumpling, if the attack starts tomorrow, it’ll be taken over by the next day.

“You- you mean-“

“If it makes you feel any better, I’m sure that snake-you won’t be any less cute.” Kai offers, giving him a weak smile.

“Nin- Ninjago is-“

“Don’t worry, you won’t be affected by the Dark Matter.” The demon is quick to assure him. “You’ll be safe with me.”

Jay feels tears start to well up in his eyes. So this is how it ends. Ninjago taken over and corrupted while he’s turned into a Serpentine, forever stuck with **_Kai_ **. 

He falls to his knees. This is it. This is the end of the world. He failed to rise to the call, and now all of Ninjago will suffer the consequence. 

The demon quickly runs over to him. “Bluejay, it’s okay. You’ll be safe, I promise. And… I’m sorry it had to come to this.”

“Why?” Jay whispers, his voice broken. “Why would you do thiss? I know that there’s another sside to you, why-“

“You’d do anything for your parents.” Kai cuts him off. “You more than proved that. Well, I’ll do anything for my little sister.”

“Wh- what?”

“I guess if you’re going to meet her, I’d better explain.” The demon sighs. He sits down on the ground next to him. “You- you know that I used to be an angel.”

Jay looks up. Is he finally going to find out what’s been going on here?

“Before everything, I was happy. It was just me and my sister. Well, us and Sensei. But the world isn’t such a happy place.” His voice is quiet and somewhat strained. “Nya, she… she went out one day, out into the mortal realm. She promised she’d be back in time for dinner.”

The demon’s eyes flash amber, and the hurt inside them reflects unspeakable pain. Just from that, Jay can guess what happened.

“She never came back.” Kai whispers.

There’s a heavy pause before the demon continues. “Later, I learned that she was killed by some Anacondrai cultists. I slaughtered each and every one of them. My halo was fading. I grew less and less connected to heaven.”

Jay stares at the demon. Maybe there’s more to him than he had originally thought. Sure, he knew that **_something_ ** was going on, but he never imagined it would be something like this.

“The Overlord is the most powerful demon ever to exist. He offered me a deal. I help him take over the mortal realm, and he brings back my sister.”

The young adult stares. Him and Kai aren’t as different as he thought. Well, aside from the fact that Kai did **_that_ ** to him.

Jay almost shudders at the brief mention his mind makes of it.

“I agreed. But he wouldn’t allow an angel to work for him. He told me to remove my wings. I didn’t hesitate.”

The demon looks so sad, so broken. He seems to be near tears. “I’ve killed so many. I’ve tortured even more. But for Nya, I’d do it again.”

Kai gets to his feet. “You’ll get to meet her soon. I have a feeling that the two of you will get along really well.”

He holds out a hand, and after a moment of deliberation, Jay takes it, letting the demon help him to his feet.

Kai gives him a sad smile. “All I’ve ever wanted was to be loved, to have a family again. I know that I rushed you in the beginning, but-“

Jay rapidly shakes his head, backing up. He feels his back press against the door as he gets as far away from the demon as he can. Nope, double nope, fifty million nope-nopes, he’s not going back down that road. He’s made it pretty damn clear that he’s not interested. He hears a strangled noise come out of his mouth, but he ignores it as he stares at the demon in fear. Just because he had a reasonable motivation doesn’t mean that any of this is okay.

“Just- just one kiss? Please? I- I want to pretend, just for a minute. I know you don’t feel the same, but please, **_please_ **, I-“ Kai begs, his voice breaking towards the end. “I just want to be loved again.”

Jay shakes his head once again. He wants nothing to do with the demon. Kai wants his sister back. Okay, that’s fair. And if Jay were in his shoes, maybe he would’ve done the same. But no matter what he’s been through, it doesn’t excuse the things he’s done.

Kai walks towards him, cornering him even further. “Bluejay, you know I love you. Please, I just- I need to be loved. Even- even if it’s fake. Please, I- I need- Jay, I need you.”

The young adult whimpers. No, he can’t- he doesn’t want the demon anywhere near him. Kai is nothing short of a monster, no matter what his motives were. He shakes his head again, pressing himself further against the door.

Kai sighs, looking to the ground. “It’s okay. I understand.” He looks up again, giving Jay a small, pained smile. It makes the young adult feel somewhat guilty, but it’s not enough to make him want to forgive the demon.

The immortal gives a clearly forced cheerful smile. “It’s gettin to be dinner time. I’ll have to see what Zane’s making.”

Jay nods slowly. “R- right.” He steps to the side, out of the way of the door. Kai opens it and walks through, gesturing for the young adult to follow. And with much reluctance, he does.

They walk down the halls and into the kitchen, but Green and Dareth are nowhere to be seen. Zane looks over at them as they walk in. “Jay. Cole wishes to speak with you. Do you know the way to the main living area?” 

Jay nods slowly. “I- yeah?” Wow, he’s popular today. All the people want to talk to him. But what could Cole have to say? An apology, maybe?

But that doesn’t quite seem to line up. Despite his reluctance, he says goodbye to Kai and Zane before making his way to the living room.

When he steps in, he notices Cole and Dareth on the couch with Green standing in front of them.

The possessed angel is mid-sentence. “-then why not-“

“Look, Jay’s here.” Cole interrupts, giving the young adult a small wave.

“Don’t change the subject. What’s it gonna be, Cole?” Green demands.

Jay glances between them. What on Ninjago is going on? Cole wanted to talk to him, so then why are the others here?

The vampire hesitates. One moment. Two. Finally, he seems to come to a decision. “Jay. I choose Jay.”

“Uh… what?” The young adult frowns.

“Well, we’re going to overthrow Kai and take down the Overlord.” Dareth explains cheerfully. 

“Not so loud!” Green hisses.

Jay blinks. He looks between Cole and Green, his confusion making way for shock. “Wh- what? You guyss… you’re betraying Kai?” His eyes meet Cole’s, and he can see determination in the dark chocolate irises that stare back.

“What he’s doing isn’t right.” The vampire tells him. “I can’t stand by and do nothing.”

Jay looks to Green.

“Its because of what Dareth told me.” The possessed angel explains. “If I’m in the Green Ninja’s body, then what’s stopping me from playing his part in the prophecy?”

Something suddenly clicks. Jay’s not the ‘lone human’. He never has been.

It’s Dareth. He convinced Morro that he could be the Green Ninja. That’s how it works, what he had to do. He changed what would’ve gone down for a better future.

“How are we going to do this?” Jay asks, looking between them.

A smile crosses Green’s face. “Let’s start at the beginning…”


	21. That Was Not Part Of The Plan

This is a horrible plan. Green is insane, and they’re all going to die. But for some reason, Jay agreed to it. They’re running out of options, and this is the best plan they’ve got. 

Small note that it being the best only means that all the other plans are worse, not that it’s good.

Jay takes a deep breath. Cole, Morro, and Lloyd are going to take down Zane, the ghost unpossessing the angel in order to take control of the Nindroid. During that time, Jay needs to keep Kai distracted. When they’re done, they’ll come up and take down the demon.

Then they’ll go to the Dark Island and close the portal. If they can figure out how, that is.

Jay cautiously walks into the kitchen, where Kai and Zane are still chatting. He takes a deep breath, steeling himself for what he’s about to do. There’s so many ways for this to go wrong, but he doesn’t have a choice.

“Uh, hey. Kai, could we, uh, could we go chat in your room? Alone? I want to talk about earlier.” The young adult lies.

The demon looks over to him. “Why?” He questions. 

“I, uh, I changed my mind.” Jay looks away. He purposefully thinks of the most embarrassing things he can to get his cheeks to flush red.

And yep, it works. 

Kai seems to brighten a little, and he wordlessly takes Jay by the hand and brings him to his bedroom. The young adult forces his breathing to remain even as they walk down the halls.

As soon as they reach the room, the demon brings them inside, closing the door behind him. “And, uh… what did you change your mind about?”

He sounds nervous, something that Jay hasn’t really heard from the immortal before. 

The young adult reminds himself why he’s doing this. It’s for Ninjago. For his parents. For the millions of people who would be corrupted by Dark Matter.

The demon goes over and sits on the bed. “It’s okay, take your time.”

Jay sits down beside him. He hesitates an extra moment. There’s so many ways this could go wrong.

Ignoring his internal screaming, he sits up straighter and places a light kiss on Kai’s cheek. 

The demon makes a strangled noise, and when Jay tries to pull away some, he wraps his arms around him and pulls the young adult into his lap.

Jay avoids eye contact with the demon. He only has to pretend for a little while, while the others take down Zane. Then they’ll come rescue him. 

“Jay…” He breathes softly, putting a hand on the young adult’s chin to direct him to look into his eyes.

The normally dark irises are tinged with orange, and there’s a softness to them that wasn’t there before.

Kai kisses him, locking their mouths together. Jay fights the feeling of revulsion that comes with the demon’s tongue entering his mouth. If he thought for long enough, maybe he could’ve thought of a different way to distract Kai, but this was the only thing he was sure would work.

He tries to mimic Kai, and the demon lets him rather than pushing back harder. After what feels like forever, the demon draws back.

“I love you.” The demon breathes. “Fuck, love you so much.”

Jay hesitates a moment. But he forces a small smile and breathes out, “Love you too.”

Kai’s eyes widen, and he’s quick to trap the young adult in another passionate kiss. He pulls him close to his chest, holding him like he’s a gift, something to be loved and cherished.

Funny how he didn’t treat him like that before.

He pulls back again, his amber eyes staring deep into Jay’s. “Is it real?” He whispers.

_‘I- I want to pretend, just for a minute.’_

_‘Please, I just- I need to be loved. Even- even if it’s fake.’_

Jay doesn’t want to answer. He’s lied so much, he’s tired of it. But he needs the demon to think that it is real, that Jay really does want him.

So he kisses Kai once more.

The demon moans into his mouth, clutching to Jay like he’s his lifeline. After a few moments of this, the young adult pulls back.

Kai suddenly stiffens, his hand reaching up to his comm. Damn, they forgot about those!

Well, time to retry what he did earlier: using Kai’s crush against him.

“Pleasse.” Jay puts his hand on Kai’s, bringing it back to him while he ‘accidently’ sends a small shock through the comm, frying it. Or, well, he hopes it fried it.

“Please what?” Kai murmurs, letting his hand be moved.

Fuck, he’s got no idea where he’s going with this. Well, he could- he’d be able to distract him if he said he wanted- if he- 

Nope, that’ll be a last resort. He doesn’t want to do anything like that if he has the choice.

“Tell me what you need, Bluejay.” His voice is low and soft, seductive. Jay has to force himself not to shudder at it and the memories it brings up.

Instead of responding, he tries to kiss the demon again. While he hates it, it’s better than any of his other options. Unfortunately, Kai pushes him back a little, preventing him from pressing their lips together. 

“Use your words.” The demon prompts.

Jay fights back against the wave of humiliation. He doesn’t want this, and he doesn’t want to ask for it. After everything he’s done and had done to him, will he ever be able to look his parents in the eye?

“Can- can I kisss you?” He forces the words out. This is a fucking nightmare, and he’s hating every second of it.

Kai responds by initiating the kiss himself. Jay does his best to kiss back, and thankfully, the demon seems to appreciate his efforts.

Every second seems to stretch into hours. But this won’t be forever. He just needs to keep him occupied long enough for the others to show up. And unfortunately, this is the only way he can think of to pull it off.

Kai draws back, their lips parting. He makes a choked noise, and it surprises Jay to see the tears forming in his eyes.

“Love you.” He whispers, pulling the young adult closer. He wraps Jay in a hug, squeezing him tightly. “I can’t believe I found you. How’d I get so lucky?” 

Jay’s pretty sure that question is rhetorical, so he stays silent, his arms wrapped around the demon. God, how did his life come to this? In just a few days, he went from boy on a junkyard to guy pretending to love a demon in order to kill him.

“I’ll keep you safe. No one will touch you while I have you. I’ll have someone turn you immortal. You can stay with me forever, safe from the outside world.” Kai promises.

Well, that sounds like a horrible nightmare, even worse than the one he’s stuck in now. Stuck with Kai for all eternity, unable to leave the mansion? He’d rather die. Seriously, being tortured in Hell sounds more appealing. Though if he did die and go to Hell, the demon would most likely fish him out.

There’s literally no way to get out of this. He silently begs Cole to hurry up.

As if on cue, there’s a knock on the door. “Hey Kai, could I talk to you for a second?” The vampire’s voice rings into the room.

“Busy!” The demon calls back, clutching Jay tighter. “It can wait.”

The young adult makes a squeaking noise as he’s squeezed. Judging from the way Kai gives him a light kiss on the cheek, the demon found it cute… somehow.

The door handle jiggles, but judging from the muttered curse, Kai must’ve locked it.

Uh oh.

“ **_I said_ **, I’m busy!” The demon growls. “Go away!”

“Kai, it’s really important, you’re going to want to-“

“Don’t tell me what I want. Fuck off, I’m busy.” Kai repeats, adjusting Jay’s position on him. He looks and sounds annoyed, and the young adult quickly tries to think of something, **_anything_ **, that could make him willing to let Cole in.

Jay hesitates a moment. He’s got an idea. It’s a bad idea, but it’s still an idea.

“Maybe we sshould ssee what he wants, babe.” He forces himself to keep his tone natural and calm, despite knowing exactly what he’s doing and hating it.

Kai freezes in place. There’s a heavy pause, before, “Y- yeah.” He agrees. “We, uh, we should.” He picks Jay up, holding the human with one hand, pressed against his torso.

The demon walks over to the door and unlocks it, but Jay’s too busy reeling from being picked up in one hand. Is he that light, or is Kai just that strong?

The moment the door opens, Cole immediately decks him.

Kai stumbles backwards and drops Jay, but the young adult, albeit shaky, lands on his feet.

“The Hell?” Kai demands.

Cole steps all the way into the room, followed by Morro. Small note: Morro, not Green. Lloyd himself follows behind them, green and golden light swirling around him.

Kai narrows his eyes. “Is this a mutiny? Funny, you guys didn’t strike me as the type. I thought you were smarter than that.”

Jay backs away, putting himself into the corner of the room. Kai notices this, and his glare at the others hardens.

Lloyd glares back. “Sorry, but you and your plans are **_cancelled_ **.” 

Kai opens his mouth to respond, but Lloyd blasts him with golden light, making him stumble backward. Morro rushes in after him, sending a blast of heavy air at the demon, keeping him on the ground. 

Cole darts in next, summoning a large cloud of dirt and rocks, which he proceeds to throw at him.

Kai blasts it with fire, leaving him relatively unscathed. He jumps to his feet, only to be tackled by the vampire. Lloyd takes advantage of this and starts glowing brighter, clearly getting ready for a larger attack.

Morro just… **_vanishes_ **. Disappears into thin air. But despite the lack of the ghost, a blast of strong wind smashes into Kai- and avoids hitting Cole.

On second thought, maybe Morro just turned invisible. That would explain it.

Kai attempts to push Cole off of him, but the vampire jumps back himself, just in time for the demon to get hit by a large glowing blast that sends him flying through the wall.

Jay winces. That’s gotta hurt.

The three rebels make to follow, but they’re all thrown back by a large wave of fire. Lloyd seems to get it the worst, his burns growing in size and number.

Jay scrunches himself more into the corner. This plan had better work… 

Kai slams into Cole, sending the vampire skidding back. But he’s thrown to the side by a mix of wind and green light. 

“I can’t believe that you would turn on me like this. Morro I can understand, but **_you_ **? I trusted you!” The demon snaps at Cole, springing to his feet and launching himself at the vampire once more.

“And I looked up to you! But you’re nothing more than a monster!” Cole shoots back as he’s thrown to the ground. The two immortals grapple for a moment, before Lloyd runs over and sends a smaller, more controlled blast at Kai.

It gives the vampire an opening, which he uses to twist the demon’s arm out of place. It follows the movement with a sickening **_crack_ **, and Jay winces. That’s gotta hurt.

Kai cries out, and his body lights ablaze, forcing Cole to back off.

Suddenly, Jay feels himself get grabbed. He realizes that it’s Morro, and calms down. But the ghost draws a knife and brings it against the young adult’s throat.

Jay can confidently say that **_this_ ** was not part of the plan.

Kai jumps to his feet, but freezes when he sees the two of them. The flames around him burn brighter, sections of the room lighting ablaze.

“Let him go.” The demon snarls. 

Cole looks over at them, his eyes widening. “Morro, this was not part of the plan!”

“I’m improvising.” The ghost shoots back, his eyes locked with Kai’s.

Lloyd starts to glow brighter.

Jay whimpers as the knife lightly brushes against his skin. It doesn’t draw blood, but it sends fear racing through him. Morro wouldn’t actually kill him, right?

He doesn’t want to test the theory.

Kai stares the ghost down. “Morro, if you don’t back down **_right now_ **I swear I’ll-“

Morro tilts Jay’s head back a little. “If you think I won’t kill him, you’re dead wrong. Surrender, and I’ll let him go.”

Kai hesitates. One moment. Two. “And how do I know that you’ll uphold your end of the deal?”

“I’ll make sure he does.” Cole promises. “I give you my word.”

Kai hesitates more. But he slowly lifts his hands above his head. “I- I surrender.”

Lloyd walks over to him and locks him in cuffs- ones that are most likely made of vengestone. As soon as they click around his wrists, Morro moves the knife and shoves the young adult away. 

Jay stumbles, falling to his knees. Cole darts over to him, looking him over for injuries. “Are you okay?”

The young adult nods shakily. “I’m- yeah.” He confirms.

He looks up, and notices that Lloyd is gripping the chain of the cuffs. “If we’ve got that settled, what do we do with him?”

“We kill him, obviously.” Morro rolls his eyes. “What else would we do?”

“That doesn’t seem immoral to you?” Lloyd glares. 

“No? He’s **_Kai_ **.” The ghost argues. “We can’t just let him go do whatever. And if we hold him captive he’ll escape!”

Cole puts a hand on Jay’s shoulder. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

The young adult shakily gets to his feet. “Y- yeah.” He eyes Morro warily, backing away some. “I’m, I’m good.”

Cole stands up, turning to face Jay. “C’mon. Let’s go somewhere else, okay?” He prompts. Then he turns to the others. “I vote we kill him, but I guess it’s not my call.”

Lloyd makes an annoyed noise. “Killing is bad!” He argues.

“So are we!” Morro shoots back.

Cole starts to lead him out of the room, but Jay somehow manages to get caught looking into Kai’s eyes. He feels a sharp pang of guilt.

“Bluejay… if this is the last time we talk, I just want to let you know that I- I love you.” From the pain in his voice, it’s clear that he hasn’t figured out that Jay was helping them.

The young adult makes a strained, stressed noise as Cole takes him away. God, he feels like an asshole. He knows he did the right thing, but then why does he feel so bad?

The vampire leads him back to the game room, sitting with him on the couch. “He didn’t try anything, did he?”

“Nothing I wassn’t encouraging him to do.” Jay glances down towards the ground.

“He didn’t… he didn’t try to do **_it_ **again, did he?”

“No, though I think if we went much longer it could’ve led there.” Jay admits. “Really, I’m fine.”

There’s a heavy pause, neither of them quite sure what to say. After a few quiet moments, Cole speaks up.

“I’m sorry.”

Jay frowns. “What for?” He asks, tilting his head. The vampire hasn’t done anything wrong here. Well, not that Jay knows of.

“Not doing this sooner. You went through a lot, and I just let you suffer. I’m sorry that I didn’t protect you.” Cole explains.

“You don’t have to apologize.” Jay assures him. “I- you know what? Thank you.”

“Huh?”

“You’ve done sso much for me, and while you may not have alwayss been there, you did protect me. Thank you for that.” The young adult smiles.

Cole looks somewhat taken aback. But then he smiles back, a soft, gentle smile. “I- no problem.”

So the two of them sit there on the couch, smiling. Because even as an army is preparing to destroy Ninjago, at least they have each other.

Morro comes back into the room, ruining the moment. “I convinced Lloyd to kill him!” He grins.

Cole nods, getting up from the couch. “Who’s going to do it?”

“Does it matter?” The ghost arches an eyebrow. “Come on, let's go.”

Jay gets up from his seat and follows Cole back into Kai’s room. His hands tremble, slick with sweat. This is it. This is the moment. This is when they kill the demon, the one who ruined his life.

So then why does he find himself dreading it?

They step back inside the bedroom, finding Kai backed up against the wall while Lloyd points a sword at him.

Jay’s not sure where he got the blade, but he figures that now would be a bad time to ask. 

The blond glances over at him. “You want him?” He asks.

“Ssorry?” Jay questions.

“Final blow, you want to do it? He’s definitely ruined your life more than any of ours, figured you might want the opportunity.” Lloyd shrugs.

The young adult hesitates. Does he want this blood on his hands? Does he want to be the one to strike Kai down?

_‘I gotcha, fuck, you look so good like this, wish I could just take you forever. You’d like that, wouldn’t you? To be fucked day in and day out, just a toy for me to use, just a hole to be fucked.’_

_‘Made for this. Made to be_ **fucked** _. I’m just glad I got to you first. Glad I got to make you mine.’_

Shakily, Jay nods. The demon stares at him as he takes the sword from Lloyd’s hands.

“B-Bluejay?” He questions, his voice unsteady. 

The young adult forces himself to look the demon in the eyes. His hand shake, and he grips the sword tighter.

Cole looks concerned. “Jay, you don’t have to-“

The young adult stabs Kai in the gut. 

The demon doesn’t even cry out, he just looks at Jay with a confused and betrayed expression. Blood starts to dribble out of his mouth as he stares at the one he thought loved him.

The young adult pulls the blade back out, dropping it to the floor. The metal clangs against it loudly, shattering the tense silence. For a moment, nothing seems to happen.

Then Kai sinks to the ground, falling to his knees. He seems to be trying to keep eye contact with Jay, but his eyes are glazed over.

A sharp cough rattles his body, sending more blood dribbling down his face.

He looks up at the young adult with a pained, broken expression. 

“I just- I just wanted to be loved.” He croaks out.

Then his body goes slack, and he falls the rest of the way over.

Jay falls to his knees. What has he done?


	22. Morro, What The Fuck

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this one is short too. I'm just really excited and I'm having trouble keeping them long. I think the next one might be the last chapter, so it'll be longer.

Morro picks up the sword and decapitates the demon.

The other three stare at him, but the ghost only shrugs. “Wanted to make sure he was really dead.” He explains.

“I’m pretty sure he was, and you didn’t have to do  **_that_ ** to make sure he wasn’t!” Lloyd snaps.

“You’re still upset about the possession, aren’t you.” It’s clearly not a question. 

“Of course I am! You read through my memories! You did things in my body that I didn’t want to do!” 

Cole sighs. “Look, we’ll need to put our differences aside for the time being. We still have to take down the Overlord, if you don’t recall.”

Jay just stares at the corpse in front of him. He killed Kai. He fucking killed Kai.

He killed someone. He’s a monster. 

Tears begin to roll down his face, but he pays them no mind. He  **_killed_ ** someone. He stabbed him through the gut. He’s a murderer. 

Cole crouches down beside him. “Hey, it’s okay.” He assures the young adult. 

“No, it’ss not.” Jay doesn’t turn to look, he just keeps staring at Kai’s lifeless body.

“See, this is why you should’ve let  **_me_ ** do it.” Morro scoffs. 

“You know what? For once, you’re right. I doubt having more blood on your hands would make a difference.” Lloyd snarks.

“Then why did you offer the chance to Jay?” The ghost counters.

Cole glares at them. “That’s enough out of you two.” He snarls in that soul-shattering voice.

Jay starts full-on sobbing. He’s a murderer. He’s no better than Kai. He’s just as much of a monster as the demon is- er,  **_was_ ** .

All it took was one hit. One stab of a sword, and a life was forever lost.

He’s choking on his tears, he can barely breathe. He dimly registers Cole beside him, trying to help. But it doesn’t make too much of a difference. He just sits there, his own eyes locked with Kai’s lifeless ones.

Morro waves a hand in front of his face, bringing him back to the real world. He looks up at the ghost.

“Jay, listen. It’s going to be okay. You killed someone. Okay, cool. Let’s move on. You can freak out about it later, right now we need to save Ninjago.” Morro hesitates a beat before adding, “Right now we need to save your parents.”

Jay sucks in a shaky breath. His parents. Right. He needs to get up. He needs to stop the Overlord. Morro’s right, he can’t focus on this right now.

He slowly gets to his feet, wiping away his tears. “Let’ss go ssave the world.” He agrees.

Cole stands beside him. He looks somewhat bewildered, but he nods at the statement. “Right. Let’s get moving.”

“How on Ninjago did that work?” Lloyd mutters.

Jay ignores him and follows the two undead as they lead the way out of the room.

Cole takes them to a weaponry. “Anything you like, take it. We’re going to the Dark Island, we’ll need everything we can get.”

Morro and Lloyd start looking around, and Jay just kind of stands there awkwardly. Cole seems to notice this and comes back over to him. 

“Is there any weapon you know how to use?” He prompts gently.

Jay nods. He feels so fragile, like he’s going to break at any moment. But he forces himself to remain strong. He needs to keep it together- at least until after they’ve saved Ninjago.

“I- I know a little bit about nunchuckss.” He offers weakly.

Cole nods. “I think we’ve got some of those in the back.” He gestures over to the far wall. “Do you want me to come with you?”

The young adult shakes his head. “I’ll be fine.” He lies. “You go look for your own weapon.”

The vampire looks hesitant, but he walks away, heading over to a wall of scythes. 

Shakily, Jay makes his way to the back wall. He’s fine. It’s all fine. This is okay. 

Sure enough, he finds a section of nunchucks. He begins to look them over, when he’s suddenly startled by a certain set.

They’re a deep, dark blue with lighter blue lightning designs across it. Hesitantly, he walks over and picks them up.

They fit perfectly in hands, almost as though they were made for him. He gives them a light spin, and feels his own power surge through him.

A troubling thought suddenly strikes him. Where did Kai get these weapons? Was there another Master of Lightning?

… did the demon kill them?

Jay shakes the thoughts from his mind. He can’t worry about that right now. He needs to focus. He can’t afford to let anything distract him from his goal: saving Ninjago.

Gripping the nunchucks tightly, he walks back over to the others.

Morro and Lloyd are both looking through the staffs, but Cole is standing at the entrance, an ebony scythe in hand. He glances over when the young adult walks up.

“You found something awfully quick.” He comments.

“Where did Kai get thesse weaponss?” Jay blurts out.

So much for not worrying about it… 

Cole hesitates a moment. “Well, uh… most of them were taken by force…” 

“He killed people and sstole their weaponss.” 

“Yeah.” Cole admits. “He did.” He seems somewhat nervous, but the young adult’s not sure why. They’re  **_Kai’s_ ** weapons-

Oh.

Cole was the demon’s second in command. 

He probably brought in quite a few of these weapons, taken from corpses of those who would dare to defy them.

The thought makes him sick. His brain starts flashing back to his previous…  **_interactions_ ** with the demon. 

Why didn’t Kai just kill him? Because he thought he fell in love with him? 

No, he  **_did_ ** fall in love with him. He just couldn’t accept that someone wouldn’t return that love, so he tried to force him to feel the same.

Judging by the fact that his body is upstairs, it’s safe to say the demon’s plan didn’t go the way he wanted it to.

Lloyd walks up to them, staff in hand. Surprisingly, it’s made out of metal, not wood. But considering who they’re fighting, that’s probably a good idea.

“Nice nunchucks.” The angel comments. “They look like they were made for your element.”

Jay tries to send a small flicker of power through it, and the bright flash of blue light that accompanies it confirms his suspicions. “I think they were, actually.” The amount of power that just radiated off of it was disproportionate to how much he put in, meaning that these likely enhance his element.

Lloyd blinks. “Well, I guess the fight will be that much easier.” He tries to give a smile, but winces as it twists his face in a way that aggravates the burns.

Jay grimaces, looking away. The burn scars are painful to look at, and the majority of them are his fault- he’s the one who got Lloyd captured. Well. Got him captured the  **_first_ ** time.

Cole looks over the angel’s staff. “Is that going to be too heavy?”

“Ha, I wouldn’t be worrying about me. You should be more concerned about yourself.” Lloyd shoots back.

Cole gives a light chuckle, but it doesn’t seem happy- it’s more threatening than anything. “Lloyd. I’m  **_at least_ ** two thousand years older than you. I know what I’m doing.” 

The angel opens his mouth to respond, but Morro picks that exact moment to walk up to the group, now wielding a large katana. 

Lloyd turns to him. “You were just in the staff section to annoy me, weren’t you.” The way he says it makes it clear that it’s not a question.

Morro’s smirk speaks for itself. 

Jay decides to prompt them forward. The sooner they save Ninjago, the better.

“We sstill have to sstop the Overlord.” He reminds.

Cole nods. “This way.” And with that, he leads the three others to the teleported pad.

He types something into the stand by the side, then looks at his fellow rebels. “You guys ready?”

Lloyd and Morro both nod, and Jay hesitates a moment before doing the same. It’s now or never.

It’s time to save Ninjago.


	23. Aren't You Supposed To Be Dead?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I lied, this is not the last chapter. There's about one or two left...

When they teleport, Jay stumbles, but he’s steadied by Cole, who is quick to look him over for injuries. “You okay?”

Jay quietly nods, looking around. It looks like they’re in some kind of forest.

So this is the Dark Island. He has to say, it doesn’t look anything like he was expecting. It seems surprisingly normal.

Then again, that was his first impression of Kai.

“Alright, first step is to find the portal-“ Lloyd begins, but Morro cuts him off.

“I’ve already found it. Been here before, remember?” He glares. “It’s on No Man’s Bluff, a tall cliff that’s not too far from here, if my memory serves correctly.”

Cole nods. “Lead the way.”

So the ghost starts leading them through the forest, but every step seems to make him more and more uncomfortable. Well, they’re heading to the place he died, who  **_wouldn’t_ ** be uncomfortable?

The trek through the woods is relatively uneventful, although at one point a rabbit came out of nowhere and scared the shit out of him. Morro found it funny, and Lloyd proceeded to give him a lecture while Cole tried to keep them moving.

Finally, they reach No Man’s Bluff. And lo and behold, a dark purple and black portal sits there. It stands over ten feet tall and six feet wide, a large oval that swirls with the two colors. 

Jay grips his nunchucks tighter. This is it. This is the portal to Hell. 

Morro is clearly terrified, but he seems to be trying to hide it. 

Lloyd hesitates a beat before walking over to him. “It won’t happen again.” He assures.

“And how do  **_you_ ** know that?” The ghost snaps, glaring at the angel.

Lloyd doesn’t back down, keeping eye contact despite the scowl. “I’ve seen your memories. I know what happened. You’ve got us this time. It’ll be okay.”

Morro hesitates. Judging by his expression, if he could cry, he probably would be. The ghost looks away, clearly pained. “Stop being nice.” He mutters.

“Okay. Fuck you.” The angel says without hesitation. 

For some reason, this seems to help, as Morro’s pained expression switches to a more annoyed one. After a beat, he turns to the portal. “Let’s do this.”

“With the Home Depot.” Lloyd grins.

Jay stifles a laugh, Cole looks confused, and Morro just shakes his head with a sigh. “Come on, let's get this over with.”

But even so, he hesitates. After a few moments of this, Lloyd just walks past him into the portal. With a huff of annoyance, the ghost quickly follows.

Cole turns to Jay. “Wait here, we’ll be right back.” 

The young adult glares, despite his brain yelling at him to take the chance and avoid going to Hell. “I didn’t come thiss far to back out now.”

The vampire sighs. “Alright.” He agrees. “But stick close to me, okay?”

Jay nods, and with that, they step into the portal.

It takes him a moment to get his bearings, and once he does, he notices something odd.

This doesn’t look like any form of Hell he’s ever heard of before. It’s a beautiful landscape, mountains in the distance with a clear stream rolling by, scattered trees dotting the grassy plain.

Even so, Lloyd seems on edge. Well, this  **_is_ ** Hell, after all. It doesn’t matter what it looks like, it’s still home to numerous demons and monsters.

“We need to find a way to close the portal.” Morro mutters. “I know how to find the Overlord’s forces, but I don’t know how to do that once we get there.”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.” Cole decides. “We have no way of telling how we would do that from here, so we’ll have to figure that out when the time comes.”

And so with that, Morro starts leading them to the Overlord.

* * *

It’s been about an hour, and they’ve finally reached the base of the mountains. “There should be a secret entrance around here…” Morro mumbles.

Cole crouches down, setting his scythe to the side in favor of pressing his hands against the ground, his eyes shut tight.

The others just kind of stand there awkwardly while the vampire concentrates, but it doesn’t last long. Soon enough, a portion of the side of the mountain starts trembling, groaning as a slice of it shifts. 

It crumbles, revealing a secret passageway. Cole slowly opens his eyes and gets to his feet, picking his scythe back up.

Morro turns to the tunnel, taking a deep breath. He hesitates a moment, but then starts leading the way, the others following close behind with their weapons on hand.

The trek is long, and it gets dark enough that Lloyd summons a light in his palm. Every moment seems to stretch into hours, and the temperature slowly rises as they travel deeper into the mountain.

The heat quickly becomes unbearable, and Jay finds himself sticky with sweat. The angel beside him doesn’t seem to be faring much better, but somehow, Cole and Morro are unaffected.

Oh, yeah. They’re undead. What’s a little bit of heat to them?

After a while of this, the vampire picks Jay up, slinging him over his shoulder. “Hey!” The young adult protests half-heartedly- in truth, he’s somewhat glad to be carried… just for a little while.

Cole doesn’t comment on his protest, he just keeps trekking onwards. Jay can’t see what’s ahead of them anymore, but it doesn’t really matter. He trusts that the others will keep him safe.

Wow, what a life he’s living. Yes, he can trust a vampire, angel, and a ghost to watch his back. Nothing unusual about that. 

After what must be hours, they finally reach a large, open cavern. Morro quickly has them duck to the side, and they wait behind a small outcrop with baited breath. Cole sets the young adult down, and Jay looks around. They stand on a tall balcony that wraps around the top of the room, while dozens of red-and-black armored soldiers march around below, gathering some black-ish purple-ish sludge.

“That’s Dark Matter.” Cole speaks in a low tone, careful to avoid being heard. He looks over to Morro. “What now?”

The ghost shrugs, trying- and failing- to hide his apprehensive expression. “I don’t know. This is as far as I made it last time.”

Lloyd frowns. “We can’t charge in, that’ll get us killed.” He glances at Morro as he says the last part.

“We need to find some way to close the portal before they find us.” Cole agrees. “But how are we going to do that?”

Jay pauses a moment, before turning to Morro. “You can turn invissible, right? And Cole, you’re so sstealthy that you might ass well be able to do the ssame.”

“What are you getting at?” The vampire frowns. “We can’t just sneak around and look for it, that’d be leaving the two of you unprotected.”

Lloyd rolls his eyes. “Trust me, I can take care of myself. Jay and I can wait here while you two scope it out- worst case scenario, we’ll run. But it won’t come to that.”

Jay nods in agreement, but Morro seems unsure. “What if we get caught?” He questions, glancing around. 

The young adult arches an eyebrow. “Dude. You’ll be invissible.” He reminds. “Can’t catch what you can’t ssee.”

The ghost still seems uncomfortable. “I don’t want to die again.” He mutters. “I only got out of the Cursed Realm a few years ago, I don’t want to go back.”

“You won’t.” Lloyd assures him. “I promise.”

After another moment of hesitation, Morro nods. “Alright.” He reluctantly agrees. “Let’s get this over with.”

Cole darts into the shadows, fading from sight. The ghost vanishes in the air, hopefully following the vampire.

A few minutes pass, and Jay begins to grow antsy. Sitting still isn’t exactly one of his strong suits. And with nothing to distract him, his brain keeps drifting back to one specific event… 

_ ‘If we’re lucky, my cock’ll be the only one you ever have. Can’t wait to see what you’ll look like bouncing on it, screaming out my name.’ _

The young adult stares at the stone floor, studying it intently. Don’t think about it, just don’t think about it. He needs to keep his mind busy.

_ ‘First Spinjitzu Master, you’re tight. Fuck, feels so good. Bet I can make you feel this good, fuck you senseless into the sheets.’ _

Jay clenches his teeth. No, he can’t think about this. He can’t. Kai isn’t here anymore, he doesn’t have to worry about it.

Because he killed him. Cut him down, stabbed him through the gut,  **_murdered_ ** him.

_ ‘B-Bluejay?’ _

Why can’t his brain just  **_shut up_ ** ? He doesn’t want to think right now. He just wants to zone out until Cole and Morro come back.

_ ‘I just- I just wanted to be loved.’ _

He killed someone. He killed a living, breathing, sentient being. Well, technically Cole and Morro aren’t alive and it would still kind of be murdered if he killed them, but not he’s just going off on a tangent which is probably a good thing because he doesn’t want to think about how he killed Kai and great now he’s thinking about it again-

“Are you okay?” Lloyd’s voice draws him back into the real world.

“Huh? Uh, yeah. I’m- I’m fine.” Jay lies. He’s not fine. Not at all. Nothing could be more wrong than what’s going on right now-

Well. Other than if  **_it_ ** was happening. That would be worse.

But that doesn’t mean that this isn’t bad. He is internally flipping out. He killed someone. Holy shit, he  **_killed_ ** someone!

“You don’t  **_look_ ** okay.” Lloyd comments. “Do you want to talk about it?” 

“I don’t know.” Jay admits, even quieter than the quiet voice he was using before. “Maybe?”

“It’s about Kai, isn’t it? I’m sorry I let you do that.” The angel looks away. “I don’t know why I offered that. I thought it might help you feel better. But I guess I didn’t think that through. Killing him made it worse, didn’t it.” The last piece is clearly not a question.

“I  **_killed_ ** him.” Jay breathes. “I flat-out  **_murdered_ ** him. I’m- I’m just ass bad as he wass.” 

Lloyd looks surprised and almost insulted by the last sentence. “Uh, what? You can’t be serious.”

“What do you mean?”

“Where do I even start?” The angel scoffs. “He killed millions in cold blood. He  **_voluntarily_ ** gave up being an angel. He was willing to sacrifice everyone in Ninjago to save one person. He- you know what he did to you. You’re nothing like him.”

“I- I  **_killed_ ** him.” Jay argues weakly. Lloyd’s argument makes sense, but he can’t believe it. He’s a monster, a murderer. He  **_killed_ ** someone.

“Jay. I would tell you if you were evil. You’re not evil.” The angel sighs. “The fact that you’re worrying about being evil only adds more evidence to that.”

“But-”

“No.” Lloyd interrupts. “You’re not evil. Trust me, I’ve seen evil before, and you? Not it.” 

The young adult looks away. “I don’t want to be like him.” He breathes out softly. 

“You aren’t.” Lloyd repeats. “I promise, you-“

There’s a slight swoosh of wind, and Morro appears beside them. “Zane’s not dead.”

“Of course he’s not, we didn’t kill him.” The angel beside him frowns. “Why would he be dead?”

“Okay so when we told you to go get a head start on finding Jay, we returned to the room and killed him. Or, we thought we killed him. Turns out he downloaded himself into a new body over here, in Hell, to warn the Overlord of our arrival.” Morro explains.

“What?!” Lloyd stares. “Okay, let me make sure I got this straight. You tried to kill him, but now he came here to alert the Overlord?”

“Yep.” The ghost confirms. “C’mon, we need to go-“

“Where’ss Cole?” Jay interrupts. 

Morro hesitates a moment. “Uh… okay, so this looks bad.”

Lloyd looks horrified. “You didn’t- you  **_left him there_ ** ?!”

“I’m not going to die again, okay?! I  **_won’t_ ** . I refuse to! Cole can take care of himself. You two can do whatever the Hell you like, but I’m getting the fuck out of here.” The ghost snaps.

No, they need Morro’s help for this. They won’t be able to do it without him! Jay needs to come up with something to convince him to stay-

Well. There is one thing.

God, Lloyd’s going to kill him.

“Before, you said that you were going to do this becausse you could play a role in the prophecy. You wanted to be the Green Ninja.” Jay reminds. He then pauses a moment. This is a horrible idea. 

He gestures to Lloyd. “Sso be the Green Ninja.”

The angel’s eyes widen. “Hold on, I did  **_not_ ** -“

Morro glances around. “You promised I wouldn’t die again.” 

“I did, but-“

“But you want me to go back, which is certain death!” The ghost snaps. “Either I go back in your body, or I don’t go back at all.”

Lloyd hesitates, looking  **_very_ ** uncomfortable. But after a few moments, he sighs. “I’ve got one condition.”

“I’ll give you your body back when it’s over.” Morro promises.

The angel nods. “Okay.” He agrees reluctantly. “Let’s get this over with.”

The ghost steps into Lloyd, and once more, the angel stumbles backwards, his hair fading black. But this time, he regains his composure rather quickly. Well, that’s probably because Lloyd’s not fighting against the possession. 

Green shakes his head, taking a deep breath. When he opens his eyes, they glow, same as before. “Okay. Slightly weird to have a willing host, and I think it’s throwing me off a little, but this should be fine.” 

“Is it posssible for the two of you to sshare control?” Jay asks. Half the reasoning behind the question is for Lloyd’s sake, but it’s also partially his own curiosity. He doesn’t know too much about magic, and what he has learned is pretty fascinating. 

“I don’t think so, no. And we’re not trying that.” Green makes a face. “ ** _Shut_** **_up_** , I said we’re not trying it! I don’t want to be figuring something like that out in the middle of a fight, okay?!”

“But if you did, wouldn’t it allow you to usse both of your elemental powerss?” Jay prompts. They’re going to need every edge they can get if they’re going to defeat the Overlord.

  
Green hesitates. “We can give it a try.” He agrees reluctantly. 

The possessed angel closes his eyes, clearly trying to concentrate. Jay stays as quiet as he can, not wanting to interrupt his focus.

His eyes open, and this time, the glow is a slightly darker shade of green. Not so much neon as it is jade.

“This is so weird.” The voice is somewhat reverberated, and the possessed angel seems slightly confused. “I think it works?”

He- wait, there’s two of them, so it’s they… 

**_They_ ** glance around, blinking, before summoning a small gust of wind, which breezes through easily. After a moment of this, they hold up their hand, and a small green light shines on it, which Green quickly muffles.

“Alright.” They agree. “Let’s go stop the Overlord.”

“And resscue Cole.” Jay adds.

“And rescue Cole.” Green agrees.

So the three of them start to make their way to where Cole was last seen. This is going to be the fight of their lives… 

* * *

It takes them longer than Jay was expecting to reach the hallway they had lost Cole in, and when they do, it’s empty. There’s no signs of a fight, which makes it slightly suspicious.

“Are you ssure thiss iss the right place?” The young adult whispers.

Green nods. “I’m sure.” He confirms. “I-”

Zane walks around the corner, an annoyed expression on his face. “Morro. Jay.” He greets. “I suppose that you have come looking for Cole.”

“Yep.” Jay agrees at normal volume. They’ve been seen, so there’s no point in trying to be stealthy. “If you’d give him back, that’d be great.”

Zane’s expression remains impassive. “I am afraid I cannot do that.”

Green glares at the Nindroid. “I’ll give you one chance to hand him over and stand down.” 

“And if I refuse?” The Nindroid arches an eyebrow.

“Then I’ll just have to **_make_** **_you_**.” Green threatens, their hands starting to glow. They narrow their eyes at their target, and they issue a threat of their own.

Footsteps sound behind them, and Jay turns to look at the owner of them. His heart starts racing as his eyes land on an all too familiar face.

“Miss me?” Kai smiles.


	24. Happily Ever After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So, uh,,, what would you guys think of a bruise pirate/mermaid fic?
> 
> (yes this is the last chapter)
> 
> ((also I made a spotify playlist if any of you want it... https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5je8vbBC94iw7DzNQGZ6hP?si=8l6XWpKjR5-8Pz0IWCoCnw )

Jay freezes, his nunchucks falling from his grasp. What. There’s no way. That’s- that’s not possible! He  **_killed_ ** him! How could he just- how the Hell- this doesn’t make any sense!   
  


“Funny thing about demons, for us, dying is only temporary. If we do, we just respawn in Hell. Pretty neat trick, huh?” His words are causal, but his tone is threatening. Oh. Oh no. This isn’t going to end well.

Green glances back. “Shit.” They whisper to themself.

Kai takes a step forward, and as much as Jay’s mind screams at him to run, he finds himself planted in place, held still by the fear that races through him. 

“That was a dirty move, you know. You sure had  **_me_ ** convinced. But I guess manipulating me wasn’t too hard for you. It’s not like you used my love against me or anything.” The demon continues walking towards him with a small, pained chuckle.

Green turns sideways, one hand pointed at each of the opponents. “Stand down.” They threaten.

Kai ignores the possessed angel. “I guess I didn’t explain things well enough to you. You seem to be under the impression that you can get away with anything you want. This time, I’ll be sure to do things  **_properly_ ** .”

Jay starts to shake. No, this can’t be happening. This is some kind of weird hallucination, there’s no way that this is real. Kai- he’s not- there’s no way! He swallows, his eyes glued to the demon as his breathing picks up. His heart hammers in his chest, and he faintly hears himself whimper. 

Green says something, but he’s too far gone to hear it. God knows what Kai has planned for him now, but whatever it is, he’s probably not going to like it.

The demon walks right up to them, and Green tries to make some kind of attack, but Zane is suddenly there, putting some kind of cuffs on them. The possessed angel fights back, but they are quickly taken down.

Jay just stands there, watching this occur. He doesn’t move, Hell, he can barely think! He just watches as Green is dragged away by the Nindroid, and Kai walks up to the young adult. He grabs his wrist, and starts pulling him back down the hall. Jay follows without resistance. 

He feels numb, like all of his emotions have been dulled. Now, there’s nothing he can do but what he’s told. He lets himself be led through the base, until he’s eventually pulled into another room. Kai presses him against a wall, getting right in his face. “Anything to say for yourself?” He questions.

Jay can’t speak. He just stares at the demon in front of him in horror. Tears prick at his eyes, blurring his vision.

Kai heaves a sigh, glancing off to the side. “I don’t understand you.” He mutters. “I would’ve given you anything. But you just keep fighting me.” He looks back to Jay. “Why do you keep fighting me?”

The young adult doesn’t answer, he just stands there, doing his best to prevent the tears from spilling over. 

“What do I have to do to get you to love me?” The demon questions. “Whatever it is, I promise I can pull it off.”

He knows he shouldn’t say it. But Kai stands there, pain in his eyes, as he waits for an answer. And god knows what will happen if he doesn’t get it.

“You can’t.” He breathes. “I don’t, and there’ss nothing you can do to-”

“Bullshit.” The demon growls. “There’s got to be something. What do I need to do to change it?” He demands.

Jay opens his mouth, but no words come out. It’s useless. Kai’s not going to listen to what he’s saying, so why bother?

The immortal glares. “I didn’t want to do it this way, but I guess I don’t have a choice.” 

The young adult stiffens, preparing for the worst. But to his surprise, the demon releases him, taking a step back. 

“You’re going to wait here.” It’s not a request, and Jay finds himself shakily nodding along. As of right now, he’s willing to do anything the demon asks. His brain is too sluggish for anything else.

And with that, Kai walks out of the room, leaving Jay to his own devices. But he doesn’t do anything. What  **_can_ ** he do? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

Minutes tick by, but the young adult doesn’t move. He stands still, rooted to the spot. 

Kai is alive.

They failed.

The demon will be able to pull off the Overlord’s plan, successfully taking over Ninjago, leaving no one and nothing to oppose them. Sure, Kai’ll get his sister back, but millions of people will become corrupted by Dark Matter.

Time continues its steady pace. How long has he been standing there? Minutes? Hours? It’s impossible to tell. He remains still, his body numb, as he awaits the demon’s return.

After god knows how long, Kai walks back inside, holding a cup of…  **_something_ ** .

“It’s the cure to the Fangpyre venom.” He explains, handing Jay the cup. The young adult takes it, unsure of what else to do. The immortal looks at him expectantly, but Jay stays still.

“Drink.” Kai prompts.

So he does. 

It tastes oddly sweet, but Jay pays it no mind. The effects take place alarmingly quickly, and the young adult watches, fascinated, as the green tint fades from his hands- and likely the rest of his body.

But something feels off. Unease settles over him, and he glances around. What is it? What’s going on? It has to be something big to be felt through his fear, so what-

“Jay.” 

The young adult looks over at Kai, the demon smiling softly. “How are you feeling?”

“There was more than anti-venom in the cup.” Jay whispers, dawning realization hitting him. What was it? Some other form of poison? It must be. What else could he have put in it?

The immortal takes the cup back, walking to the other side of the room and setting it down on a table. “There was.” He confirms. “It’ll take anywhere from an hour to a day to fully kick in.”

The young adult starts to shake. So it’s not even going to be quick. He’s going to die slowly and painfully, and there’s nothing he can do. Maybe if he finds a way to end himself now, he can escape that fate.

“Don’t look so sad.” Kai ruffles his hair. “You’ll be happy.”

Happy? Happy to die? Why? What is the demon planning to do to him in that time that would make him happy to  **_die_ ** ?

Kai pulls his hand back, but he doesn’t stop smiling. “I’ve got to go take care of a few things, okay? Do you want to come with me?”

Jay hesitates. He has no idea what he wants. Well, actually, he wants Kai to be dead again and to be able to take down the Overlord. That would be nice.

But he can’t fight back the pang in his chest that comes with picturing the demon’s death. He doesn’t  **_really_ ** want him dead. He just wants him out of the way. 

“I guess I can take a little while to take you back to my base.” He muses. “But you have to promise to behave.”

Jay quietly nods. But what about Cole and Green? He can’t just leave them here. God knows what Kai and the Overlord plan to do to them… 

But he lets the demon lead him through the Overlord’s fortress. All he can do is what he’s told. Yet somehow, he doesn’t feel too bad about it. Kai’s just trying to help, after all.

Wait- why is he thinking like this? No, he hates Kai. The immortal is an asshole, why is he making excuses for him?

They pass Zane in the halls, and the Nindroid gives the demon a strange look.

“I took your advice.” Kai explains. “I didn’t really want to, but I ran out of options.” Then he continues walking, Jay trailing behind him.

What advice? To poison him? He certainly had other options, he could have killed Jay in pretty much any way he wanted, and the young adult would have been helpless. 

There’s something here that he’s not getting. Some kind of missing piece that no one has explained to him. But what is it?

Maybe its the kind of poison? Maybe it won’t kill him, maybe it’ll just paralyze him, leaving him helpless to the demon’s every whim.

But that doesn’t quite fit either. Kai had said something about it making him happy. How could a form of poison make him happy?

It doesn’t make any sense, but he decides not to ask Kai. The demon might get upset, and there’s no good way to phrase the question. 

So he just follows the immortal as he leads the way out of the mountain.

When they reach the hot center part of the tunnel, Kai picks him up, the same way that Cole did. Except instead of slinging him over his shoulder, he carries him bridal style. 

Good thing its so hot, or else he’d have no excuse for the redness in his face. It’s really not normal for someone to be strong enough to pick a person up that easily.

Time marches onward, and soon enough, they reach the exit of the tunnel. But even then, Kai doesn’t set him down, he just keeps carrying the young adult, clutching him to his chest.

He’s not going to carry him all the way to the teleporter pad, is he?

* * *

He carried him all the way back to the teleporter pad.

Once they reach it, Kai sets him down. “You’re really light.” He comments, turning to the console beside the pad as he types in whatever they type in before teleporting.

“... thanks?” Jay murmurs awkwardly. It doesn’t really seem like a compliment, but he didn’t know what else to say. Hmm… maybe he should’ve just stayed quiet.

Kai gives a small laugh, and then they appear in his bedroom. “You wait in here for me. I’ll be back in about a half hour.”

Jay nods, and with that, the demon leaves.

The young adult looks around. He’s not going anywhere near the bed, he knows that much. He’s pretty sure that the side room is a bathroom, so he should probably avoid that, too. 

Well, is there anything to do here? It doesn’t look like it. He could just sit on the floor and try not to think of anything, but that would eventually bring him back to-

Nope! Different topic now! Uhhhhh….

The room is slightly destroyed, with a large hole in the wall and large sections of the room charred heavily. It’s pretty obvious that a fight took place here.

Slowly, Jay turns his eyes to where the demon’s body had been previously. There’s no corpse, but blood stains the whole area, still wet and dripping.

The young adult winces. He feels so bad about killing Kai. The immortal had only wanted people to care about him. If he could go back, he would’ve found another way. Some way to keep Kai alive.

Its definitely not related to the pang in his chest that comes with thinking of the demon’s face. It’s an odd occurrence, but it’s somewhat justified. Is it so bad to care about someone who- who-

Who literally killed over half the people in Ninjago. God, he needs to get a grip! What the Hell is wrong with him?!

He sits down on the floor, trying to ignore the racing of his heart. This is not okay. What’s going on?! Why is he suddenly thinking of how soft the demon has been, how much he tried to protect him, how he-

Bad brain! Bad! Stop finding Kai attractive, he’s fucking  **_evil_ ** and has done horrendous things to him, it’s not okay for him to be thinking of him like this! What is going on in his head?

But despite his reservations, he can’t help but remember the fake relationship fondly. Would it be so bad to want that for re-

**_SHUT UP, BRAIN!_ **

Jay groans loudly. What-

Wait a minute.

What was in that drink?

Maybe it wasn’t poison.

… did Kai put a fucking **_love_** **_potion_** in his drink?!

He’s honestly not entirely sure if those things are real, but judging from the way his brain is acting, it seems like they are. Oh. Oh, no. This is bad, this is horrible, and worst of all, it lines up with everything previous, only further proving his fear.

Oh, god. Kai gave him a love potion.

Well, shit. Now what does he do?

Once again, there’s not a lot he  **_can_ ** do. Kai holds all the cards, has all the power. Anything he tries will be futile. There’s no way out of this situation.

Though he’s not entirely sure if he  **_wants_ ** out. Even if its caused by the love potion, surely loving Kai wouldn’t be that bad. And yeah, it’d be nice if all of Ninjago wasn’t turned evil, but-

But what?  **_Gah_ ** , this is a nightmare! Losing control of his own thoughts and feelings? Sounds suspiciously like Dark Matter. 

This is like a worse version of his original situation. Forced to be  **_Kai’s_ ** forever. Though in the beginning, it was more in slave terms than romantic, but that’s what makes it worse.

Well. Maybe not  **_worse_ ** . He won’t be living in constant fear and dread, he’ll-

**_NO!_ **

Maybe he won't be living in fear and dread, but that's because he’ll be incapable of feeling that way due to this stupid love potion! He’d rather be in fear than not have control of his thoughts!

Sighing, he sits down on the ground, scrunching into a ball. This is a fucking nightmare… 

* * *

By the time Kai returns, he’s unsure of how he feels. Having his mind messed with doesn’t seem too bad- it won’t turn him evil like Dark Matter would, and loving Kai doesn’t feel like too much of a bad thing… the only reason he isn’t totally sure is because of that gnawing in his gut and the nagging in his mind. 

“Hey there, Bluejay.” Kai gives a soft smile, crouching down in front of him. “How are you feeling?”

“Confused.” Jay answers honestly. His voice is barely above a whisper, and the word trembles with his fear. But what is he afraid of? Kai? The demon loves him, he wouldn’t hurt him.

“That’s normal.” The immortal assures him. “It’ll go away after a little while.” He stands, holding his hand out in a silent offering.

Jay hesitates for a moment before taking it, letting himself be pulled to his feet. He’s not sure how he feels about the feeling going away. Something about that feels wrong, but he doesn’t know what it is… 

“O-okay.” The young adult agrees.

“Tell me, how do you feel about Cole?” Kai asks. His tone is innocent enough, but once again, something inside screams at him, telling him that something is wrong.

Jay ignores it. “I like him.” He confirms. Cole is a good friend. But that feeling tells him he just fucked up big time, even though there’s nothing that could mean that.

Kai’s smile becomes strained. “I see. Well, I’ll just have to fix that, then.”

“What do you mean?” Jay questions with a frown. That’s not really a thing you ‘fix’. It either is or isn’t.

“You’ll see. Come on, I’ve got him downstairs.” The demon starts leading him through the mansion, and the human follows wordlessly. Why is he downstairs? Isn’t that the dungeon?

Well, it makes sense that he’d be in the dungeon, he  **_did_ ** rebel against Kai, and that’s not a good way to stay in his good books.

On the way, the demon grabs a shiny knife and a thing of garlic, which Jay finds odd, but doesn’t comment on. After that, they head down to the dungeon.

It’s empty except for Cole, which makes Jay narrow his eyes. Hey, wasn’t Wu down here? Where did he go?   
  


The only sign that the old angel had ever occupied one of the cells is a few loose feathers.

Cole is in the closest cell, chained to the wall in the same way Lloyd has been, meaning the chains are likely still vengestone.

The vampire looks up when they enter, wincing as they do. “J- Jay?” He questions. “What-”

“Love potion.” Kai interrupts. “Unfortunately, that doesn’t remove love for other people. And I don't really feel like sharing.”

Jay glances between them, unsure of what’s going on. Cole seems clearly uncomfortable, and not just from the cell. Almost as though-

The garlic! Of course! When Jay has asked about it earlier, both of them had gotten really defensive, meaning it’s most likely a weakness for-

Wait.

Kai’s going to kill Cole.

**_Fuck_ ** .

Jay turns to face the demon. “You aren’t going to-”

“I am.” Kai interrupts, still staring at Cole. “Garlic and a silver dagger work wonders against vampires, you know. Well, maybe  **_he_ ** wouldn’t know that, considering that he’s the only one of his kind… well, the only one still alive, anyways.”

“Shut up.” The younger immortal growls.

“Oh, look on the bright side! You’ll get to see your mom again!” The demon walks over to the cell, unlocking it.

Jay freezes. No, he can’t. He won’t kill him. He  **_can’t_ ** kill him. Sure, maybe Cole betrayed him and tried to steal Jay from him and-

Okay, so maybe he has motivation to kill him. But the human can’t just be okay with this! Cole is his friend!

“Kai, don’t do this. There’s got to be a better way to-”

“I’ve  **_tried_ ** everything else.” The demon interrupts. “You’re really stubborn, you know that? I don’t want to be a second choice. So I’m removing the first choice from the equation.” 

“I don’t think that’s how that works.” Cole comments. “It’s still-”

Kai throws the garlic at him, and the vampire cries out as it lands on his skin. The spot where it hit is stained red, and it's easy to see how much pain he’s in.

“If you’re going to do this, just get it over with.” Cole speaks through gritted teeth.

“Kai,  **_please_ ** .” Jay begs. No, he can’t kill the vampire. He  **_can’t_ ** . Cole is his friend, the only reason he’s gotten this far. Kai can’t kill him!

“Can’t there be a way you can get him out of the way  **_without_ ** killing him?” The human continues his pleas.

“The fact that you’re begging so much is part of the reason I have to kill him.” The demon argues.

“Kai, he’s my  **_friend_ ** . Literally my only friend. Please don’t kill him.”

The Red Ninja pauses a moment. “Friend?” He asks slowly.

Jay’s not sure why he’s caught up on that part, but he nods. “Friend.” He confirms. 

Kai hesitates. He seems unsure of himself, and he glances between the two other occupants of the dungeon. His hand is still tight around the dagger as he walks up to the vampire. Yet even so, he doesn’t seem to have as much malicious intent.

Slowly, he picks up the garlic. “Okay.” He agrees. “But we’re doing this  **_my_ ** way.” Without hesitation, he turns around, leaving the cell. He locks it behind him. “I’ll be right back.” He assures Jay before walking out.

There’s silence between the two remaining occupants of the dungeon. Is it awkward? Jay can’t tell if it’s awkward. But eventually, Cole speaks up.

“Did he really use a love potion?” He asks softly.

Jay hesitates a moment before nodding. That tense feeling from before is gone, his mind finally not freaking out. Why is he more comfortable with Cole than Kai? Sure, the demon’s done some bad things, but he loves Jay. The love potion is only proof of how much he wants him.

“I’m sorry.” Cole tells him, his voice full of remorse.

The human shrugs. “It’s not so bad.” He smiles. “He feels the same way, and I know he won’t do anything to hurt me.”

The vampire sighs. “That far gone already, huh?”

“What do you mean?” Jay frowns. Far gone? Yeah, he knows he’s under the effects of the potion, but it doesn’t have to be a bad thing. And yes, Kai’s done some bad things in the past, but that doesn’t mean he’s evil. Just a little misguided, that’s all.

“Forget I said anything.” Cole gives him a sad smile. His expression is pained, and he glances off to the side. “It doesn’t matter now.”

The comment strikes him as odd, but he leaves it at that. A few moments later, Kai walks back in, holding some kind of metal… collar? What’s that for?

The demon doesn’t say anything, he just goes over to Cole’s cell and unlocks it, walking up to the vampire. The two make intense eye contact.

“You’re going to obey my commands, or you are going to die. Is that clear?” Kai snarls.

Cole hesitates a moment, glancing over at Jay. He then slowly nods, even though his reluctance is clear.

“Good.” The demon puts the collar onto the vampire, and it closes with a loud click. “That’s made of vengestone. It also functions as a shock collar, so I recommend you behave.” And with that, he releases Cole from his chains. 

The demon turns and leaves the cell. After a moment of hesitation, the vampire follows. 

Kai walks up to Jay and ruffles his hair. He seems to be doing that a lot lately. “He’s not dead.” He smiles. Which is kind of obvious, but its nice that he went out of his way to keep Cole alive for him.

“Thank you.” Jay returns the smile.

And with that, the demon leads the way out of the room. 

The two others follow him, and Kai takes them to the living room. The TV has been replaced, and the demon sits down on the couch, gesturing for Jay to sit beside him. Cole moves to do the same, but the older immortal glares at him. “ **_You_ ** can sit on the floor.”

And slowly, reluctantly, the vampire does as he’s told.

“What happened to Lloyd and Morro?” Cole asks softly.

“Not important.” The demon waves him off, cuddling closer to Jay. The human starts a little, surprised by the sudden contact. But it’s not unwelcome, and he soon curls up next to him.

And hey, this isn’t so bad. Jay has a friend, a boyfriend, and a nice place to live.

Life is good.


End file.
